Mars Science Laboratory: Curiosity Rover

by John A. Greene

With its rover named Curiosity, Mars Science Laboratory mission is part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the red planet. Curiosity was designed to assess whether Mars ever had an environment able to support small life forms called microbes. In other words, its mission is to determine the planet's "habitability." To find out, the rover will carry the biggest, most advanced suite of instruments for scientific studies ever sent to the Martian surface. The rover will analyze samples scooped from the soil and drilled from rocks. The rover's onboard laboratory will study rocks, soils, and the local geologic setting in order to detect chemical building blocks of life on Mars and will assess what the Martian environment was like in the past.To make best use of the rover's science capabilities, a diverse international team of scientists and engineers will make daily decisions about the rover's activities for the following day. Even if the rover's technology all performs flawlessly, some types of evidence the mission will seek about past environments may not have persisted in the rock record. While the possibility that life might have existed on Mars provokes great interest, a finding that conditions did not favor life would also pay off with valuable insight about differences and similarities between early Mars and early Earth.This book contains comprehensive coverage of all aspects of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) and its Curiosity rover. There is complete data on the MSL mission, science investigations, historical Mars missions, the Gale Crater landing site, and the radioisotope nuclear power source. 158 Pages. Over 60 photos and illustrations, most in full color. Hyperlinked table of contents for easy navigation.Partial Science Laboratory – Fact SheetMission OverviewScience PayloadSpacecraftLaunch VehicleMars at a GlanceMars Science Laboratory InvestigationsScience PayloadEngineering InstrumentsMSL Entry, Descent and Landing Instrument (MEDLI) SuiteInterplanetary Cruise and Approach to MarsEntry, Descent and LandingMars Surface OperationsRover TelecommunicationRover ComputingRover NavigationMars Science Laboratory Landing SiteMars Recent, Current and Upcoming Missions OverviewMars A Story of ChangesMyths and RealityHistorical Mars The ScienceScience GoalsLanding Site SelectionInstrumentsObjectivesInstrument DetailsSampling SystemScience PlanningLaunch, Cruise, Approach, and EDL Phases; Surface Initial Checkout ActivitiesSurface Operations OverviewExample Mission Scenarios

203 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 28, 2012