One of NASAs most ambitious missions to date, the Mars Science Laboratory mission is a robotic spacecraft, called a rover, that will explore the surface of Mars. The rover, named Curiosity, landed on the Red Planet on Aug. 5, 2012 at 10:32 p.m. PDT. Curiosity will act as a mobile science laboratory on Mars to investigate whether life could exist on the Red Planet and even help scientists and engineers plan for future human missions to Mars. While Curiosity will not be the first rover ever sent to Mars, it will certainly be the most advanced. Eight years in the making, the rover is equipped with 17 cameras, a handful of instruments and an innovative landing system. And thats just the beginning to its list of cool features.
Curiosity has been testing its cameras, laser and other functions since landing on the Red Planet on Aug. 5. NASA officials announced Monday that the rover had successfully unfolded its arm.
Live Feeds
Daily Images
Rover Information
Mars Maps