Curiosity's rear Hazard Avoidance Camera (Hazcam) took this image on Aug. 28, 2012, after the rover made a 52-foot (16-meter) drive away from its landing site.
Martian dirt clings to the wheels of NASA's Curiosity rover in this photo taken Aug. 28, 2012, after the rover's first long drive, a 52-foot trek.
This color panorama shows a 360-degree view of the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover, including the highest part of Mount Sharp visible to the rover. That part of Mount Sharp is approximately 12 miles (20 kilometers) away from the rover. Scientists enhanced the color in one version to show the Martian scene as it would appear under the lighting conditions we have on Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain. Photo released August 27, 2012.
This photo from NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows the layered geologic history of the base of Mount Sharp, the 3-mile-high mountain rising from the center of Gale Crater. Image taken on Aug. 23, 2012.
With students and NASA space shuttle astronaut Leland Melvin looking on, musical artist will.i.am posts a tweet soon after his song "Reach for the Stars" was beamed back from the Curiosity Mars rover and broadcast to a live audience at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
Musical artist will.i.am addresses a crowd of students at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., where his new single, "Reach for the Stars," was beamed down from the Curiosity Mars rover and broadcast to the live audience on Aug. 28, 2012.
This image taken by the Mast Camera (MastCam) on NASA's Curiosity rover highlights the interesting geology of Mount Sharp, a mountain inside Gale Crater, where the rover landed. Photo released August 27, 2012.
This image taken by the Mast Camera (MastCam) on NASA's Curiosity rover highlights the interesting geology of Mount Sharp, a mountain inside Gale Crater, where the rover landed. Image released August 27, 2012.
This photo by NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows a color-enhanced view of gravel-like terrain near the rover during Mastcam calibration tests performed on Aug. 23, 2012. The color has been enhanced to appear as the scene would look on Earth.
This image is from a test series used to chacterize the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken on Aug. 23, 2012, and looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site.
This photo from the Mars rover Curiosity shows the base of Mount Sharp, the rover's destination. The black rock enlarged in the inset is as large as the 1-ton Curiosity, which is the size of car. Photo taken on Aug. 23, 2012.
This image is from a series of test images to calibrate the 34-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken on Aug. 23, 2012 and looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site. The image has been color enhanced to look as it would appear on Earth.
This image is from a test series used to chacterize the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken on Aug. 23, 2012, and looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site. The color has been adjusted to appear as the scene would on Earth.
This image is from a test series used to chacterize the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken on Aug. 23, 2012, and looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site. This annotated version of the image indicates the distances to different features.
NASA's Mars Science Lab looks around Gale Crater: This color panorama, which includes the highest part of Mount Sharp visible to the rover, was shot by Curiosity's Mast Camera on Aug. 8 and 18, 2012.
This image shows a close-up of track marks left by NASA's Curiosity rover. Holes in the rover's wheels, seen here in this view, leave imprints in the tracks that can be used to help the rover drive more accurately. The image was released Aug. 29, 2012.
The straight lines in Curiosity's zigzag track marks are Morse code for JPL, which is short for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., where the rover was built and the mission is managed. The image was released Aug., 29, 2012.
This image shows a close-up of track marks from the first test drive of NASA's Curiosity rover. The rover's arm is visible in the foreground. A close inspection of the tracks reveals a unique, repeating pattern: Morse code for JPL. This image was released Aug. 29, 2012.
The two donut-shaped tracks make an infinity symbol, and mark the first two drives of NASA's Curiosity rover. The landing site is at the far right. Tracks from the first drive on Aug. 22, 2012 lead away from the landing site and include the donut at right. The second donut was made during the rover's second drive on Aug. 27., 2012
This image taken by a front Hazard-Avoidance camera on NASA's Curiosity shows track marks from the rover's first Martian drives. The rover's Bradbury Landing site and its first tire marks are seen at center, in the distance, while tracks from the second drive are in the foreground. The image was released on Aug., 27, 2012.
This image taken by NASA's Curiosity rover shows track marks from a successful drive to the scour mark known as Goulburn, an area of bedrock exposed by thrusters on the rover's descent stage. The image was added Aug. 27, 2012.
Engineers wiggled the wheels as a test of the rover's steering and anticipate before embarking on Curiosity's first drive. This image was taken by one of Curiosity's Navigation cameras on Aug. 21.