rover

Curiosity fires ChemCam laser for first time on Mars

On August 19, 2012, NASA's Curiosity rover used the ChemCam, its laser-camera combo unit, for the first time on Mars, firing an energy beam at a small rock called "Coronation."

Having excited the atoms in a target rock into an ionized, glowing plasma with its million watt laser, ChemCam can then use its telescopic camera to watch the light emitted and analyze it with three spectrometers for information about elemental composition.

This first firing of the laser was primarily for target practice and calibration, but the ChemCam team expects to eventually take about a dozen compositional measurements … Read more

Curiosity's view of Mars so far

NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, better known as the Curiosity rover, landed on the surface of the fourth planet from the sun on August 5, and it brought more cameras than even the most fanatic visitors to the Grand Canyon.

The space agency has been sharing many of the best from the thousands of pictures being sent back by Curiosity, and I went through NASA's public collections to compile the most incredible and insightful views of the Martian surface, and of the rover itself. … Read more

Do AT&T's FaceTime limits break FCC rules?

Tuesday's tech news roundup honors our future robot overlords:

AT&T is being accused of data-plan discrimination and breaking FCC rules regarding new iPhone FaceTime options. AT&T recently announced that iPhone customers could use FaceTime video chat service over a cellular network if they have the new shared data plan. (Previously, FaceTime was limited to Wi-Fi.) But several groups have spoken out about the limit and questioned if it follows FCC guidelines. AT&T responded saying it does not believe this breaks any FCC rules, since FaceTime was offered to all customers over Wi-Fi and … Read more

Curiosity does the Martian wiggle! (picture)

In preparation for driving the Curiosity rover around the Martian surface, NASA engineers today wiggled the wheels from mission control at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory as a test of the rover's steering systems. This animated series of four images shows the movement of Curiosity's rear right wheel as rover drivers on Earth turned the vehicle's four corner wheels in place in the gravel at the landing site on Mars.

Lego version of Mars Curiosity rover moves closer to reality

When the Curiosity rover landed on Mars earlier this month, the world couldn't get enough of the six-wheeled dynamo.

Mass adoration for the roving Martian also successfully propelled a pet project by mechanical engineer Stephen Pakbaz, who submitted a miniature version of the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover last November to Cuusoo, a site officially created by Lego that lets fans vote on brick-based concepts (similar to Kickstarter). If a proposition gets 10,000 votes, then "a Lego jury evaluates the idea's feasibility as a product and makes a decision." … Read more

Game not over yet for OnLive

Any objection to Monday's top tech headlines is overruled:

The Apple vs. Samsung trial is almost at a close. The jury is expected to begin deliberations Tuesday. The two tech giants spent three weeks battling over patents and accusations of copying.

OnLive is facing some rough days ahead. The cloud-based gaming service sold its assets to an investor Friday and laid off employees, but said it will rehire many back as the newly restructured company (which will still be called OnLive). The company says subscribers shouldn't see any problems or interruptions in service during this restructuring.

College students … Read more

Mars Curiosity rover team prefers Macs to PCs

If there was anything Curiosity fans wanted to know about Mars, the rover, and the scientists behind the Martian landing, they were able to ask it today.

Reddit hosted a lengthy "Ask us Anything" Q&A with 12 members of NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover science and engineering team. And, yes, it included the "Mohawk guy."

Dozens of topics were covered, from whether there is life on Mars to how far Curiosity will roam within the Gale Crater to specifications of the equipment on the rover. At the time of this writing, there is a … Read more

Get new Mars Curiosity Rover photos in your inbox

The photos and videos coming from NASA and the Curiosity Rover on Mars are truly stunning. It's fun, exciting, and even a little puzzling at times to see the landscape and how another planet so far away compares to Earth.

Both the official NASA and Mars Curiosity Twitter accounts are great sources to keep up on the latest news and photos coming from the brave little rover so far from home. But, we can't sit and watch Twitter all day long, making the chance of missing a photo a real possibility.

While browsing If This Then That shared … Read more

Get top dollar for iPhone trade-ins

Wednesday's Update pays top dollar to bring you the top stories:

Analysts are predicting that as many as 10 million iPhones could be sold if Apple launches it in September. That's because many reports are pointing to a Sept. 21 release date for the next model. So if you're planning on selling your old phone for cash, you should plan ahead to make the most money. Trade-in sites like eBay Instant Sale, NextWorth and Gazelle are already seeing an increase of visitors looking to sell an iPhone 4S or iPhone 4.

You can get more money for … Read more

Take a virtual tour of Mars on your iPhone or iPad

If you've been following the Curiosity rover's progress even a little, you've probably seen the cool 360-degree Mars panorama that hit the Web a couple days ago.

As CNET's Amanda Kooser pointed out, it's "about as close as you'll get to being there."

Now you can get even closer, virtually speaking. It turns out that the panorama works with gyroscopes, meaning that if you view it on your iPhone or iPad, you'll get a much more interactive experience.

Stop listening to me describe it and go do it:

Open up the … Read more