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 Self-portrait of Curiosity located at the foothill of Mount Sharp (October 6, 2015) | |
| Mission type | Mars rover |
|---|---|
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 2011-070A |
| SATCAT no. | 37936 |
| Website | mars |
| Mission duration | Primary: 668 sols (687 days) Current: 4199 sols (4313 days) since landing |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Manufacturer | |
| Dry mass | Rover only: 899 kg (1,982 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | November 26, 2011, 15:02:00 UTC |
| Rocket | Atlas V 541 (AV-028) |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral LC-41 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Heliocentric (transfer) |
| Mars rover | |
| Spacecraft component | Rover |
| Landing date | August 6, 2012, 05:17:57 UTC SCET MSD 49269 05:53:28 AMT |
| Landing site | Aeolis Palus ("Bradbury Landing") in Gale Crater (4°35′22″S 137°26′30″E / 4.5895°S 137.4417°E) |
| Distance covered | 18.13 km (11.27 mi) as of 11 February 2018[update] |
Mars rovers (NASA) | |
The Curiosity rover is a robotic car-sized Mars rover. It is exploring Gale Crater, which is near the equator of Mars. The rover uses nuclear power and is part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL).
The MSL mission has four main scientific goals: study Martian climate and geology, search for water, and find out whether Mars could have ever supported life. Curiosity carries the most advanced scientific equipment ever used on the surface of Mars.
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