Curiosity Mars Rover

The Mars rover Curiosity, also known as the Mars Science Laboratory, landed on the Red Planet in August 2012.

Related Topics: Mars, NASA, India Mars Orbiter Mission, Mars Rover Opportunity, Exomars

Latest Updates

The iron-nickel meteorite "Cacao," discovered on Mars by NASA's Curiosity rover. The Curiosity team posted this photo on Twitter on Feb. 2, 2023.

Curiosity rover finds metallic meteorite on Mars

By Mike Wall published 3 February 23

NASA's Curiosity rover has rolled up on another meteorite on Mars, an iron-nickel rock the mission team has dubbed "Cacao."

A view of Gale Crater captured by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover.

Curiosity rover discovers opal gems on Mars with clues to watery past

By Elizabeth Rayne published 11 January 23

Opals, which contain a lot of water, have been found on Mars. They might be an indicator of past life and possibly a source of water for astronauts in the future.

Mars' ancient atmosphere may not have had much oxygen after all

By Tereza Pultarova published 22 December 22

There may have been no oxygen in the atmosphere of ancient Mars after all, a new study has found, but don't despair, there still could have been living creatures crawling on the planet.

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity reaches intriguing salty site after treacherous journey

By Robert Lea published 21 October 22

After a treacherous journey, NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has reached an area that is thought to have formed billions of years ago when the Red Planet's water disappeared.

The Curiosity rover has been exploring Mars for 10 years. Here's what we've learned.

By Stefanie Waldek last updated 6 August 22

Curiosity landed on Mars on Aug. 5, 2012, with one main goal: to determine whether the planet was once habitable. In 10 years, it has answered that question and many others.

Martian panorama showing the view back down Mount Sharp at the center of the image and rounded hills in the distance.

Curiosity rover: 15 awe-inspiring photos of Mars (gallery)

By Daisy Dobrijevic last updated 22 September 22

NASA's Curiosity rover continues to explore Mars, taking incredible photos as it goes. We take a look at some of its best images here.

Curiosity rover on the rusty red rugged surface of Mars covered with rocks and a hazy red sky.

Curiosity rover: The ultimate guide

By Elizabeth Howell, Daisy Dobrijevic last updated 5 August 22

Reference NASA's Curiosity rover is still exploring the Martian surface and looking for signs of life on Mars. We explore the rover in more detail here.

Explosive volcanism on Mars deposited rare mineral in Curiosity rover's crater home

By Robert Lea published 27 July 22

A concentrated clump of a rare mineral was discovered in the Gale crater in 2016 by the Curiosity rover. Now, researchers may finally know how it got there.

Graphic illustration showing the layers of Mars against the backdrop of space.

Mars: Everything you need to know about the Red Planet

By Charles Q. Choi last updated 29 November 22

Reference Mars, the fourth planet from the sun is famed for its rusty red appearance. Here we explore the Red Planet in more detail and see why scientists find it so intriguing.

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity collected rock samples from the Yellowknife Bay formation of Gale crater.

Rock samples from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover contain key ingredient of life

By Samantha Mathewson published 28 June 22

Martian rock samples collected by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover show signs of key ingredients of life as we know it on Earth.

Stunning Mars photos by the Curiosity rover show ancient climate shift

By Elizabeth Howell published 25 June 22

The Curiosity rover might be spotting signs of the Martian climate drying up in ancient times.

'Spikes' spotted by the Curiosity rover on May 17, 2022.

These bizarre spiky Mars rocks likely formed by erosion and ancient fractures (photo)

By Elizabeth Howell published 4 June 22

A long-running NASA rover imaged twisted Red Planet rock pillars.

The "dog door" feature discovered by NASA's Curiosity rover.

'Dog door' on Mars found by Curiosity rover is a rocky 'doorway into the ancient past,' NASA says

By Tereza Pultarova published 21 May 22

The strange door-like feature discovered in a martian cliff earlier this month is perfectly natural but provides a "doorway into the past", said NASA.

Curiosity spotted "gator-backed" terrain on its path across "Greenheugh Pediment," causing mission scientists to turn the rover around.

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover turns to avoid dangerous 'gator-back' rocks (photos)

By Samantha Mathewson published 13 April 22

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover unexpectedly changed its course up Mount Sharp to avoid hazardous "gator-back" terrain.

A photo of the "mineral flower" alongside other diagenetic features on the surface of Mars captured by NASA's Curiosity rover on Feb. 25.

Curiosity rover snaps close-up of tiny 'mineral flower' on Mars

By Harry Baker published 6 March 22

A new image taken by the Curiosity rover reveals a tiny, flower-like mineral deposit less than half an inch wide on the Martian surface.

NASA's Curiosity rover captured these images of clouds in the sky of Mars, on Dec. 12, 2021.

NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars is watching the clouds drift by and they're beautiful

By Elizabeth Howell published 17 February 22

The clouds were so faint that NASA employed special imaging techniques to spot them.

The wheels on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover have accumulated some damage during the robot's nine-plus years on the Red Planet, as this photo snapped by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Jan. 27, 2022, shows.

Rugged Mars has taken big bites out of the Curiosity rover's wheels (photos)

By Mike Wall published 8 February 22

NASA's Curiosity rover has left plenty of marks on Mars over the past nine-plus years, and the Red Planet is returning the favor.

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used two different cameras to create this selfie in front of a rock outcrop named Mont Mercou, which stands 20 feet (6 meters) tall.

Possible sign of Mars life? Curiosity rover finds 'tantalizing' Red Planet organics

By Mike Wall published 18 January 22

NASA's Curiosity rover has found some interesting organic compounds that may be signs of ancient Mars life, but much more work is needed to vet that hypothesis.

This panorama, made up of 81 individual images stitched together, was taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Nov. 20, 2021, which was the 3,303rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission.

NASA's Mars Curiosity rover shares new panoramic view of Red Planet

By Samantha Mathewson published 2 December 21

NASA's Curiosity rover snapped a stunning new selfie surrounded by expansive, rocky terrain on Mars.

NASA's Mars missions will go offline during a temporary communications blackout in October 2021. (Clockwise, from top left: Perseverance rover, Ingenuity helicopter, InSight lander, Odyssey orbiter, MAVEN orbiter, Curiosity rover and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter)

NASA Mars missions facing 2-week communications blackout as sun blocks Red Planet

By Elizabeth Howell published 28 September 21

NASA plans to pause most of its Martian work in October for safety reasons associated with the Red Planet's position in space.

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
View Archive