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Scientists are overjoyed after seeing the Curiosity rover's first initial images showing a wheel resting on the Martian soil.

August 05, 2012

Scientists are overjoyed after seeing the Curiosity rover’s first initial images showing a wheel resting on the Martian soil.

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NASA/JPL-Caltech

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This animation shows a proposed route for NASA's Curiosity rover, which is climbing lower Mount Sharp on Mars. The annotated version of the map labels different regions that scientists working with...
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This animation shows a proposed route for NASA's Curiosity rover, which is climbing lower Mount Sharp on Mars. The annotated version of the map labels different regions that scientists working with the rover would like to explore in coming years.
Curiosity's Proposed Path up Mount Sharp
This May 25, 2015, view from the Curiosity rover's Mastcam shows a site where two different types of bedrock meet near "Marias Pass" on Mount Sharp. Pale mudstone in the foreground is like bedrock ...
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This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a site where two different types of bedrock meet on lower Mount Sharp.
Geological Contact Zone Near 'Marias Pass' on Mars
A rock outcrop dubbed "Missoula," near Marias Pass on Mars, is seen in this image mosaic taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager on NASA's Curiosity rover.
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A rock outcrop dubbed "Missoula," near Marias Pass on Mars, is seen in this image mosaic taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager on NASA's Curiosity rover.
Contact Zone: 'Missoula'
In this season 4 finale, Gentry Lee and Rob Manning reveal how surprises, hidden flaws, and uncertainties have always been a part of rovers and the exploration of Mars.
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In this season 4 finale, Gentry Lee and Rob Manning reveal how surprises, hidden flaws, and uncertainties have always been a part of rovers and the exploration of Mars.
Secrets of the Mars Rovers
This diagram illustrates Mars' "thermal tides," a weather phenomenon responsible for large, daily variations in pressure at the Martian surface.
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This diagram illustrates Mars' "thermal tides," a weather phenomenon responsible for large, daily variations in pressure at the Martian surface.
Thermal Tides at Mars
This view of "Vera Rubin Ridge" from the ChemCam instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows sedimentary layers, mineral veins and effects of wind erosion. ChemCam's telescopic Remote Micro-Ima...
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This view of "Vera Rubin Ridge" from the ChemCam instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows sedimentary layers, mineral veins and effects of wind erosion. ChemCam's telescopic Remote Micro-Imager took the 10 component images of this scene on Aug. 24, 2017, from about 141 feet away.
Erosion Effects on "Vera Rubin Ridge," Mars
Download a zip file of Curiosity’s Landing Site: Topographic Model of Gale Crater.
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Curiosity’s Landing Site: Topographic Model of Gale Crater
Curiosity's Landing Site: Topographic Model of Gale Crater
Curiosity Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada gives a descriptive tour of the Mars rover's view in Gale Crater. The white-balanced scene looks back over the journey so far.
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Curiosity Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada gives a descriptive tour of the Mars rover's view in Gale Crater. The scene from "Vera Rubin Ridge" looks back over the journey so far, including buttes, dunes and other features along the route.
Curiosity at Martian Scenic Overlook
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with NASA's Mars Science Lab (MSL) rover Curiosity rolls out to its Space Launch Complex-41 launch pad arriving at 8:40 a.m. EST today.
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A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with NASA's Mars Science Lab (MSL) rover Curiosity rolls out to its Space Launch Complex-41 launch pad arriving at 8:40 a.m. EST today.
Mars Science Laboratory on the Pad
This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a network of two-tone mineral veins at an area called "Garden City" on lower Mount Sharp.
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This March 18, 2015, view from the Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a network of two-tone mineral veins at an area called "Garden City" on lower Mount Sharp.
Prominent Veins at 'Garden City' on Mount Sharp, Mars
Scientist Rob Sullivan explores the Dumont Dunes area, on the hunt for the best place to test-drive the Scarecrow rover.
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mars rover, desert, dune, test, Scarecrow - Scientist Rob Sullivan hikes up the side of a giant dune, leaving a long trail of footprints in the sand.
Desolate Landscape
This view from NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover shows the downwind side of a dune about 13 feet high within the Bagnold Dunes field on Mars. The rover's Navigation Camera took the component images on De...
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This view from NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover shows the downwind side of a dune about 13 feet high within the Bagnold Dunes field on Mars. The rover's Navigation Camera took the component images on Dec. 17, 2015. As on Earth, the downwind side of an active sand dune has a steep slope called a slip face.
Slip Face on Downwind Side of 'Namib' Sand Dune on Mars
NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life, is in development for a launch opportunity in 2009.
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NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life, is in development for a launch opportunity in 2009.
Mars Science Laboratory with Power Source and Extended Arm, Artist's Concept
This graph shows the ratio of concentrations of several elements in four different pairs of targets examined by Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) instruments on NASA Mars rovers Curiosity an...
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This graph shows the ratio of concentrations of several elements in four different pairs of targets examined by Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) instruments on NASA Mars rovers Curiosity and Spirit.
Alteration Effects at Gale and Gusev Craters
This view of a rock called "Rocknest 3" combines two images taken by the Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on the NASA Mars rover Curiosity and indicates five spots where ChemCam had hit th...
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This view of a rock called "Rocknest 3" combines two images taken by the Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on the NASA Mars rover Curiosity and indicates five spots where ChemCam had hit the rock with laser pulses to check its composition.
Mars Rock 'Rocknest 3' Imaged by Curiosity's ChemCam
Dust devils dance in the distance in this sequence of images taken by the Navigation Camera on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover on Feb. 12, 2017, during the afternoon of the rover's 1,607th Martian day,...
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Dust devils dance in the distance in this sequence of images taken by the Navigation Camera on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover on Feb. 12, 2017, during the afternoon of the rover's 1,607th Martian day, or sol.
Curiosity Observes Whirlwinds Carrying Martian Dust
This May 29, 2015, view of a Martian sandstone target called "Big Arm" covers an area about 1.3 inches wide in detail that shows differing shapes and colors of sand grains in the stone. It is from ...
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This view of a sandstone target called "Big Arm" covers an area about 1.3 inches (33 millimeters) wide in detail that shows differing shapes and colors of sand grains in the stone.
Diverse Grains in Mars Sandstone Target 'Big Arm'
This is the left-eye member of a stereo pair of images of the Mars Science Laboratory mission's rover, Curiosity.
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This is the left-eye member of a stereo pair of images of the Mars Science Laboratory mission's rover, Curiosity.
Mars Science Laboratory Mission's Curiosity Rover (Left Eye of Stereo)
This series of images shows the Martian moon Phobos as it crossed in front of the Sun, as seen by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover on Tuesday, March 26, 2019 (Sol 2359).
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This series of images shows the Martian moon Phobos as it crossed in front of the Sun, as seen by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover.
Curiosity Observes Phobos Eclipse: Sol 2359
NASA’s Curiosity rover recently made its most challenging climb on Mars. Curiosity faced a steep, slippery slope on its journey up Mount Sharp, so rover drivers had to come up with a creative detou...
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NASA’s Curiosity rover recently made its most challenging climb on Mars. Curiosity faced a steep, slippery slope on its journey up Mount Sharp, so rover drivers had to come up with a creative detour. After the detour, Curiosity stopped by a new area with intriguing impact craters to explore.
Mars Report: Curiosity Rover's Most Challenging Climb Yet
This right-eye member of a stereo pair of images from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a full 360-degree view of the rover's surroundings at the site where it fir...
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This right-eye member of a stereo pair of images from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a full 360-degree view of the rover's surroundings at the site where it first drilled into a rock.
Mars View from 'John Klein' to Mount Sharp, Right Eye
This view of a Martian rock called "Rocknest 3" combines four images taken by the right-eye camera of the Mast Camera (Mastcam) instrument, which has a telephoto, 100-millimeter-focal-length lens.
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This view of a Martian rock called "Rocknest 3" combines four images taken by the right-eye camera of the Mast Camera (Mastcam) instrument, which has a telephoto, 100-millimeter-focal-length lens.
A Martian Rock Called 'Rocknest 3' (Raw-Color)
This Dec. 2, 2016, view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on the mast of NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover shows rocky ground within view while the rover was working at an intended drilling site cal...
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This view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on the mast of NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows rocky ground within view while the rover was working at an intended drilling site called "Precipice" on lower Mount Sharp.
Martian Terrain Near Curiosity's 'Precipice' Target
In this image from NASA's Curiosity rover, a rock outcrop called Link pops out from a Martian surface that is elsewhere blanketed by reddish-brown dust. The fractured Link outcrop has blocks of exp...
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In this image from NASA's Curiosity rover, a rock outcrop called Link pops out from a Martian surface that is elsewhere blanketed by reddish-brown dust. The fractured Link outcrop has blocks of exposed, clean surfaces.
Link to a Watery Past
A screen view from OnSight, a software tool developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in collaboration with Microsoft. OnSight uses real rover data to create a 3-D simulation of the Martian en...
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A screen view from OnSight, a software tool developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in collaboration with Microsoft.
OnSight Tool Allows Scientists to Meet in 3D Mars Simulation

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