curiosity

How NASA tests an against-all-odds Mars rover landing

It's not every day that you land a spacecraft on Mars, even if you're NASA. And in the case of the Curiosity rover, hurtling toward a Mars landing as Sunday night turns into Monday morning, the space agency is tempting fate with a novel approach that involves a big parachute, a specially designed winch, and some very high hopes.

The rover's descent through the Martian atmosphere, which NASA has dubbed the "Seven Minutes of Terror," will be an edge-of-your-seat experience, despite the space agency's excruciating preparations.

Consider, for instance, just one key element that … Read more

Microsoft saying good-bye to Hotmail

No spam in Tuesday's top tech stories:

It's not often we get a shakeup in the email world, but say hello to Microsoft's new free email account, Outlook.com. It'll eventually be replacing Hotmail, but you might want to grab your name now. There's a new, clean look and it ties in your social media contacts. It's not too far off from what you may be used to already in Gmail, as you'll be able to tell from CNET's full overview of the features.

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, called Curiosity, will … Read more

NASA details looming Mars rover landing, '7 Minutes of Terror'

In just 41 days, on August 5, NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover will touch down on the Red Planet, and this will be no ordinary landing. In fact, NASA has dubbed the descent "Seven Minutes of Terror."

"When people look at it, it looks crazy," senior EDL engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Adam Steltzner said in a new video by NASA on the rover landing. "It is the result of reasoned engineering thought, but it still looks crazy."

The recently released video (see below) outlines exactly how crazy the feat of landing … Read more

Curiosity rover on track for pinpoint Mars landing

NASA's $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory rover is in good shape and on target for a nail-biting seven-minute plunge to a bull's-eye landing on the red planet in early August, thanks to upgraded software and post-launch improvements that will enable the craft to make a more precise descent to the floor of Gale Crater, mission managers said Monday.

While engineers are continuing to troubleshoot a contamination issue with Teflon seals inside a high-tech rock drill on the rover's robot arm, the project scientist said he is confident workarounds will be in place by the time the … Read more

NASA's new Mars rover, Curiosity, kills time on Twitter

NASA's newest Mars rover, Curiosity, has a lot of time on its hands these days--so naturally it's spending a lot of time on Twitter.

The $2.5 billion science laboratory on wheels is in the middle of a 352-million mile trip to the Red Planet with an anticipated arrival date of August 5, 2012. If you're wondering exactly how fast that means Curiosity is traveling through space right now, well... you could just ask it, like @KristineKisky did, eliciting this response that's sure to confuse all non-space nerd-type people:

Curiosity has been actively tweeting and answering fan tweets since before its launch at the end of November. It's even developed a fairly sophisticated--if incredibly geeky--sense of humor and pop culture sensibility, with gems like Super Bowl weekend's "Think Brady & Manning throw long spirals? I'll go 352+ million miles to "touchdown" in Gale Crater." Or "30 Seconds to Mars? More like 241 days to go!"… Read more

Mars rover: The next generation

Make way for Curiosity, a car-size Mars rover that will pick up where Spirit and Opportunity left off. It launches this month, and will arrive on the Red Planet next summer.

$2.5 billion Mars rover departs Earth, heads for red planet After a flawless launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, NASA's costly Mars Science Laboratory rover is safely on the way to Mars for a bold mission to study the habitability of the red planet. (Posted in Space Shot by William Harwood) November 26, 2011 3:17 a.m. PT

Ambitious Mars Science Lab rover set for Saturday launch … Read more

Nuclear 'space battery' bests solar in Curiosity Mars mission

If you're going to Mars with an SUV-size robot, you'll need a really good energy supply.

The Mars Science Laboratory, called Curiosity, scheduled for launch on Saturday will be powered by a nuclear device, rather than solar panels. Designers hope the nuclear generator will make the mobile robot more productive as it conducts science experiments in the search for conditions to support life.

Once it arrives on Mars, the robot will be heated and powered electrically from a ceramic form of plutonium dioxide. The nuclear decay from that block, which is covered in multiple protective layers, generates heat … Read more

NASA nixes James Cameron Mars 3D camera

NASA has shelved a special 3D camera system that was developed with filmmaker James Cameron for the $2.4 billion Mars rover Curiosity, which is due to launch later this year.

The zoom mast camera for Curiosity was nixed because there isn't enough time to prepare it for launch in November, according to developer Malin Space Science Systems and NASA.

The system was in the final stages of development, but time ran out. Technical difficulties prevented engineers from delivering it as scheduled last December. The system did not work as well as the fixed focal length cameras now installed on Curiosity, Malin said.

The Fixed Focal Length Mast Camera (Mastcam) has two cameras--a 100-millimeter telephoto lens and a 34-millimeter wide-angle lens.

"While Curiosity won't benefit from the 3D motion imaging that the zooms enable, I'm certain that this technology will play an important role in future missions," Cameron was quoted as saying. "In the meantime, we're certainly going to make the most of our cameras that are working so well on Curiosity right now."

Curiosity's mission is to make observations on Mars and help assess whether the planet could support microbial life. … Read more

How the Curiosity rover will land on Mars

Slamming into the Martian atmosphere at 13,000 mph and enduring temperatures of up to 3,800 degrees Fahrenheit, a peak deceleration of up to 15 Gs, and the jerk of a supersonic braking parachute--that's just the opening act.

For NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, the real fun will start 50 seconds before touchdown when the one-ton nuclear-powered rover falls free of its parachute for a nail-biting rocket-powered final descent to the surface. (For the main story in this package, see "On Mars, satisfaction awaits Curiosity.")

Unlike past Mars missions, the Curiosity rover will not set down atop a legged lander … Read more

The Mars science gear on Curiosity

NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover, the most scientifically powerful robotic lander ever built, will use a suite of sophisticated instruments to search for carbon compounds and the geological markers that might indicate whether ancient, once-wet environments were ever habitable.

Scientists currently are assessing four potential landing sites for the rover's August 2012 arrival at the Red Planet that offer the best chance for a successful landing and the most scientifically promising terrain. (For the main story in this package, see "On Mars, satisfaction awaits Curiosity.")

"What we know going into this is every one of … Read more