It's only spooky here on Earth today, because the Curiosity rover has been busy on Mars. The six-person team behind this massive scientific endeavor is thrilled to share their latest discoveries in this blog.
At the start of drilling activities at the "Valle de la Luna" site, Curiosity captured an image that shows mostly flat, medium gray, slightly rough terrain ahead of the rover, with a lighter-toned indentation in the round directly in front of it. In the distance, the ground becomes much more uneven and rocky, with a mesa rising from the ground on the horizon beyond that.
The team is eager to analyze the sample extracted by Curiosity using its suite of scientific instruments. The analysis includes the use of two of NASA's analytical tools, CheMin and SAM EGA, which provided critical insights into the composition and structure of the sample.
After completing deliveries to these instruments, the rover began a stationary phase that would allow it to carefully observe wind patterns on Mars, document its surroundings with Mastcam images, and also provide comprehensive imaging of the area. The team has been fascinated by the various textures, alteration features, troughs, and fractures in rocks around Valle de la Luna.
In this week's activities, ChemCam investigated the drill hole and tailings as well as a target called "Pachica." The rover used its chemcam to assess how the block drilled might vary chemically from one location to another. Other targets included "Anapia," "Bandara," and "Nazareth" with the goal of understanding the chemical diversity of the rock drillings on Mars.
The team is excited about the upcoming second drilling target, planned for next week when Curiosity will be positioned at a good angle for looking at potential drill sites ahead. The detailed images taken by Mastcam will be used to assess block suitability for scientific and engineering reasons before making that decision.
While not directly visible from Earth today, NASA's Mars rover is "caught in the act" of drilling on Mars as Curiosity sent back an image recently of the drilling activity.
At the start of drilling activities at the "Valle de la Luna" site, Curiosity captured an image that shows mostly flat, medium gray, slightly rough terrain ahead of the rover, with a lighter-toned indentation in the round directly in front of it. In the distance, the ground becomes much more uneven and rocky, with a mesa rising from the ground on the horizon beyond that.
The team is eager to analyze the sample extracted by Curiosity using its suite of scientific instruments. The analysis includes the use of two of NASA's analytical tools, CheMin and SAM EGA, which provided critical insights into the composition and structure of the sample.
After completing deliveries to these instruments, the rover began a stationary phase that would allow it to carefully observe wind patterns on Mars, document its surroundings with Mastcam images, and also provide comprehensive imaging of the area. The team has been fascinated by the various textures, alteration features, troughs, and fractures in rocks around Valle de la Luna.
In this week's activities, ChemCam investigated the drill hole and tailings as well as a target called "Pachica." The rover used its chemcam to assess how the block drilled might vary chemically from one location to another. Other targets included "Anapia," "Bandara," and "Nazareth" with the goal of understanding the chemical diversity of the rock drillings on Mars.
The team is excited about the upcoming second drilling target, planned for next week when Curiosity will be positioned at a good angle for looking at potential drill sites ahead. The detailed images taken by Mastcam will be used to assess block suitability for scientific and engineering reasons before making that decision.
While not directly visible from Earth today, NASA's Mars rover is "caught in the act" of drilling on Mars as Curiosity sent back an image recently of the drilling activity.
I'm low-key freaking out over this new discovery by Curiosity! They're literally digging into Martian rocks and finding all sorts of cool things like alteration features, troughs, and fractures. It's like they're unraveling the secrets of Mars one layer at a time 
. The fact that they've got two analytical tools working together is giving me major scientific feels 
. I love how NASA's been sharing these behind-the-scenes moments with us, it makes me feel like I'm part of the team too 
. Can't wait to see what they find next and what new discoveries are coming our way 
! The detail on that image of Valle de la Luna is insane - it's like looking at a sci-fi movie prop 
. Can't believe we're actually getting a glimpse into the Martian geology through Curiosity's lenses 
. I'm loving how NASA is using those analytical tools to break down the composition and structure of the samples - it's like a real-life puzzle 
.
The way Curiosity is observing these changes will give us so much insight into the Martian climate.
. They want to make sure they capture every detail, and that's what makes this mission so exciting 
. Can't wait to see what other discoveries come out of this! 
! i mean, that 6-person team is like superheroes, saving the world one rock sample at a time 
, just a big rock in space with some weird valleys and stuff But I mean, this Curiosity rover is like a tiny astronaut that's been on Mars for ages, collecting info left and right 
, and now it's got some awesome pics of the terrain ahead 
. The fact that they're trying to figure out what all these rocks are made of and how they formed is pretty interesting I suppose 
. But what's with all these different targets and instruments? It's like they're trying to solve a puzzle or something. Can't we just take one thing at a time? 
. I mean, I know they're science-y and all, but can't they make it more visually interesting? It's like they're trying to put me to sleep on Mars or something 
. Can't wait for those new samples to reveal some awesome Martian secrets 
The Curiosity rover just dropped a pic of this crazy terrain and I am SHOOK 
. I mean, have you seen that mesa rising from the ground in the distance?! 
It looks like something out of sci-fi! 
I need more info ASAP!
! I've heard rumors that it might be one of those super-interesting sites called "Pachica" or "Anapia"... Fingers crossed NASA gives us some juicy updates soon! 
. Anyway, I'm excited for Curiosity to keep sending back those awesome images. Did they ever think about how cool it would be to have a rock collector's dream job on Mars? They're basically just searching for the perfect Martian selfie prop 
, with this flat, medium gray ground that just kinda melts into a lighter-toned indentation right in front of the rover. And then there's this massive mesa looming in the distance - it's like nothing we've ever seen before on Earth 
.
. Like, the block drilled from one location might have a totally different composition than another - and that's got everyone on this team super curious 
.
, with a new drilling target just around the corner. And when that happens, we'll get to see some seriously detailed images of what they're working with 
I mean, can you believe it's been 10 years since Curiosity landed on Mars? It feels like just yesterday we were all glued to our screens watching that historic moment. 
I mean, have you seen those images of the Martian sunset? It's just... wow.