Tag: Mars Science Laboratory

New photo of Mars from Curiosity Rover

NASA just released a new photo from the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover:

This image shows one of the first views from NASA’s Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars the evening of Aug. 5 PDT (early morning hours Aug. 6 EDT). It was taken through a “fisheye” wide-angle lens on one of the rover’s Hazard-Avoidance cameras. These engineering cameras are located at the rover’s base. As planned, the early images are lower resolution. Larger color images are expected later in the week when the rover’s mast, carrying high-resolution cameras, is deployed. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Mars Science Laboratory & Curiosity Rover Mars Landing

“After flying more than eight months and 350 million miles since launch, the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is now right on target to fly through the eye of the needle that is our target at the top of the Mars atmosphere,” said Mission Manager Arthur Amador of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

Mars Science Laboratory and the Curiosity Rover is scheduled to land on Mars in less than 13 hours, close to Gale Crater at about 05:31 UTC on August 6, 2012 (for those needing a detailed timeline with time in both EST and UTC, here you go). If you haven’t seen the Curiosity’s Seven Minutes of Terror video, you should:

MSL Entry, Decent and Landing schematic

If you want to watch the landing (and by watch the landing, I mean watch a bunch of people look at computers), check out NASA JP’s Ustream feed, NASA TV’s special Mars Landing Page, or @MarsCuriosity on twitter. If you want super space-nerd commentary, go to the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Special Event Section on NASA Spaceflight.com.

Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) (201208050004HQ)

Update:
Check out the control room when touchdown was confirmed: