Tag Archives: Curiosity

On August 8, 2025, NASA‘s Curiosity rover found itself at the intersection of three ridges found on the Martian landscape. This “peace sign” shape, as called by NASA engineers, is part of a larger boxwork pattern on the surface of Mars. What is it? Since it landed within Mars’s Gale Crater in 2012, Curiosity has been exploring the planet’s reddish …

NASA’s Curiosity rover, after years of navigating the rugged terrain of Mars, has recently reached a rare and highly stable location in Gale Crater. This new position is considered one of the most secure and advantageous spots since the rover’s landing, allowing mission scientists to plan operations with exceptional precision and minimal risk to the vehicle. The discovery was detailed …

NASA’s Curiosity rover continues its trek through the Martian terrain with a new stop that has captured both scientific and visual intrigue. In a blog update from NASA’s Science Mission Directorate on August 15, 2025, the rover team described its latest observations in an area known as The Boxworks, where oddly shaped rocks—some resembling clusters of fossilized eggs or even …

This photo was captured by the Mars Curiosity rover on July 24. NASA’s Curiosity rover has captured photographs of a rock on Mars that closely resembles coral found on Earth. Two objects were discovered on July 24 inside Gale Crater, both are small, pale rock shaped by wind erosion. Despite their appearance, they are not biological. In a statement, NASA …

Nasa/Getty Images Happy 13th birthday to the Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars on August 6, 2012. Ah, I remember when I turned 13: just starting to shave, voice cracking like ice in spring, and learning how to multitask so that my tiny nuclear reactor would last longer. Sadly, Curiosity will never …

Thirteen years ago, the Curiosity rover landed on Mars, inside Gale crater in particular. It was originally sent to the red planet for a two-year mission, but it was extended indefinitely just a few months into its operations. The rover has several goals, most of which are meant to help scientists determine whether Mars could ever have supported life in …

Thirteen years into its mission, NASA’s Curiosity rover is still uncovering Martian mysteries — and learning to do more with less. Since landing in Gale Crater in 2012, Curiosity has traveled more than 22 miles (35 kilometers), studying rock layers, analyzing soil and revealing Mars’ ancient past, including signs that the planet once harbored liquid water, a thicker atmosphere and …

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover demonstrated a new multitasking capability when capturing this view: It snapped the 15 images that make up the mosaic while simultaneously communicating with an orbiter. The images were taken by the right navigation camera on Curiosity’s mast July 26, 2025, the 4,611th sol, or day, of the mission. The rover’s tracks cross through a region filled …

Instead, Curiosity and its younger sibling Perseverance each use their MMRTG nuclear power source, which relies on decaying plutonium pellets to create energy and recharge the rover’s batteries. Providing ample power for the rovers’ many science instruments, MMRTGs are known for their longevity (the twin Voyager spacecraft have relied on RTGs since 1977). But as the plutonium decays over time, …

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover used its Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), a camera on the end of its robotic arm, to view this wind-eroded rock shaped like a piece of coral on July 24, 2025, the 4,608th Martian day, or sol, of the mission. Nicknamed “Paposo” by the rover’s science team, the rock was about 2 inches (5 centimeters) from …