Tag Archives: MarsRover

NASA maps out proposed travel plans for Curiosity, decides to head for the hills

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NASA maps out proposed travel plans for Curiosity, decides to head for the hills

As the vista on Mars gradually gets ever clearer, and the system checks continue to show that the rover is in good stead, the team behind Curiosity will be increasingly eager to stretch its legs wheels. The first trip might be just a cautious few meters, but plans for a more adventurous jaunt have just been revealed. The first location in Curiosity's sights is an area referred to as Glenelg, which, based on initial pictures, offers three different geological characteristics, as well as potentially being an area where water used to be present. The site is only 1,300 feet (400 meters) from where the rover landed, but it could still take several weeks to get there. This is merely a quick dash compared to the next leg of its journey, which sees Curiosity heading out to an area called Mount Sharp -- a large mound of layered rock which is hoped to contain visible geology potentially dating back millions of years. With seven kilometers (4.4 miles) lying between the rover and the mountain's foothills, it'll be a much longer journey, but one that could provide the first real evidence of the planet's ability to host, or have hosted, life.

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NASA maps out proposed travel plans for Curiosity, decides to head for the hills originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Aug 2012 09:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Curiosity survives brain transplant, prepares for first drive

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Curiosity survives 'brain transplant,' prepares for first drive

If you thought your OTA update took too long, how about four days? That's how long the Curiosity "brain transplant" took, and is now finally complete. This now means that the main computers have switched over from landing mode, to surface mode -- and thus we hope -- meaning the rover's good to go. That said, it's still a painfully slow process, with Curiosity's wheels likely remaining steadfastly motionless for at least another week -- and even then we're looking at a trip of just a few meters. When it comes to interplanetary travel, though, slow and steady definitely wins the race -- in the meantime, you can soak up the view.

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Curiosity survives brain transplant, prepares for first drive originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 08:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Life on Mars: One week of Curiosity

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Life on Mars One week of Curiousity

Is there life on Mars? NASA's latest mission to the red planet might well answer that question, or perhaps the more pertinent question, was there life on Mars. At 10:02 AM EST on November 26th last year, the space agency's Mars Science Laboratory (to give the mission its full name) set off on its eight-month journey to the red planet. The most advanced equipment ever sent to the planet -- and the biggest-ever rover -- should allow exploration of some of the most interesting regions, over far larger distances than ever previously covered. On arrival, after negotiating a tricky landing, the mobile laboratory (that's Curiosity) will spend a Martian year (687 Earth days) analyzing rock samples and seeking evidence of conditions suitable for microbial life or -- we can live in hope -- actual evidence of the same. After the break, we take a look at some of the key events over the first seven days on the planet's surface.

Continue reading Life on Mars: One week of Curiosity

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Life on Mars: One week of Curiosity originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NASA’s Curiosity rover receives long-distance OTA update, ‘brain transplant’ on Mars

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NASA's Curiosity rover receives longdistance OTA update, brain transplant on Mars

Think it's nifty when your carrier deigns to provide your smartphone with that long awaited OTA update? That's nothing. Over the weekend, NASA's Curiosity rover will be receiving its first long-distance OTA update -- all the way out there on Mars. The goal is to transition both redundant main computers from software suited for landing the vehicle to software optimized for surface exploration -- such as driving, obstacle avoidance and using the robotic arm. NASA calls it a "brain transplant" and points out that the software was actually uploaded during the flight from Earth. Now can someone please enable OTA downloads for the human brain? We'd really like to know kung fu. PR after the break.

Continue reading NASA's Curiosity rover receives long-distance OTA update, 'brain transplant' on Mars

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NASA's Curiosity rover receives long-distance OTA update, 'brain transplant' on Mars originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Aug 2012 19:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NASA’s Curiosity Mars landing successful, first pictures trickling in (video)

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NASA's Curiosity Mars landing successful, first pictures trickling in

After "seven minutes of terror" involving guided entry, parachute and powered descent, and even a sky crane, NASA's Curiosity rover has successfully touched down on the surface of Mars. Better yet, the 2,000lbs (900kg) science lab has established communications with Earth and is sending back telemetry along with the first pictures of Gale crater. These initial grayscale images are only 256 x 256 pixels in size but show Curiosity's shadow on the Martian soil. Peek at our galley below and stay tuned for updates.

Update: Hit the break to check out a video of all the "seven minutes of terror" highlights.

Gallery: NASA's Curiosity first pictures of Mars

Continue reading NASA's Curiosity Mars landing successful, first pictures trickling in (video)

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NASA's Curiosity Mars landing successful, first pictures trickling in (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 02:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Watch NASA’s Curiosity rover touch down on Mars, live at 1:30AM EDT

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Watch NASA's Curiosity rover touch down on Mars, Live at 1:30 AM ES

You watched the launch, bit your nails over computer simulations and even played the game, and it all comes down to today: NASA's Curiosity rover is about to land on Mars. The $2.5 billion vehicle has been en route to the red planet for eight months, and in a few short hours will spend seven terrifying minutes blindly making its way to the Martian surface -- only to make NASA scientists wait another full seven before reporting on its success or failure. The rover is flying solo.

That doesn't mean we can't be there in spirit, however: NASA TV will be broadcasting the event on Ustream, offering commentary from the minds behind the rover, as well as audio from mission control. The Curiosity Cam, which runs from 11:30PM until 2:00AM EDT and 3:30AM to 4:30AM EDT, will offer commentary from the scientists and engineers behind Curiosity, while a second feed (at NASA JPL Live, which runs from 11:30PM onward) will play audio from mission control. If all goes to plan, NASA will be able to share an image from Curiosity's navigation cameras, confirming its safe arrival on the Martian surface. Sounds like a hell of a show to us.

Read on to view the Curiosity Cam right here or check out the source links below to prep your evening (or early morning) viewing for yourself. Let us know your own thoughts on Curiosity's landing in the comments.

Update: Touchdown confirmed! The entire sequence went perfectly to plan, and rover Curiosity is now on the surface of Mars and sending telemetry data.

Update: NASA's press conference is now happening live.

Continue reading Watch NASA's Curiosity rover touch down on Mars, live at 1:30AM EDT

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Watch NASA's Curiosity rover touch down on Mars, live at 1:30AM EDT originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Aug 2012 22:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mars Rover game hits Xbox Live, tasks you with safely landing the Curiosity with Kinect

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Mars Rover game hits Xbox Live, tasks you with safely landing the Curiosity with Kinect

NASA has already made it clear that the Curiosity's touchdown on Mars is a nerve-wracking experience, what with the seven minutes of radio silence, zero margin of error and all. To drive that point home, the organization partnered with Microsoft to offer Xbox Live players the experience of controlling the nerve-wracking descent. Starting Monday, you'll be able to download the free Mars Rover Landing, NASA's first Xbox Live game. The title uses the Kinect motion controller to simulate the many phases of landing, including dropping the heat shield and deploying the supersonic parachute, with players' movements controlling the speed and direction of the craft as it approaches the Red Planet. You'll get three scores -- one for each of the landing process -- not to mention some newfound appreciation for what employees at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be going through on August 5th.

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Mars Rover game hits Xbox Live, tasks you with safely landing the Curiosity with Kinect originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 03:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NASA launches Spacecraft 3D app for iOS, lets you explore its Curiosity and a lot more

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NASA launches Spacecraft 3D app for iOS, lets you explore its Curiosity and a lot more

Chances are most of us (you included) know this isn't NASA's first dive into the iOS pool, and the agency's latest addition to its app portfolio is surely going to make a high number of explorers very space happy. Dubbed Spacecraft 3D, the augmented reality application will let folks poke around the various, curious rovers and GRAILS NASA uses to explore our planet, the rest of the solar system and, of course, the entire abysmal universe. Even better, NASA's handing out the app free of charge, so those of you with a "Designed in California" device can grab it now from the App Store, and don't forget to check out the presser down below to soak in the official word.

Gallery: NASA's Spacecraft 3D app for iOS

Continue reading NASA launches Spacecraft 3D app for iOS, lets you explore its Curiosity and a lot more

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NASA launches Spacecraft 3D app for iOS, lets you explore its Curiosity and a lot more originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 19:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NASA’s Seven Minutes of Terror: Curiosity’s precarious Mars landing explained (video)

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NASA's Seven Minutes of Terror Curiosity's precarious Mars landing explained video

Edited and scored with the dramatic tension of a summer blockbuster trailer, NASA's put together a gripping short clip that dresses down Curiosity's mission to Mars for the layman. The "car-sized" rover, set to touchdown on August 5th of this year at 10:31PM PDT, is currently journeying towards the Red Planet on a suicide mission of sorts, with the success of its make it or break it EDL (enter, descent, landing) wracking the nerves of our Space Agency's greatest minds in advance. Their cause for concern? A period of radio silence, dubbed the "seven minutes of terror" for the amount of time it takes a signal to reach Earth, during which the craft will have already either smashed disastrously into the Martian landscape or nestled perfectly down from the ascend phase on a 21ft long tether. The logistics involved are so numerous and prone to error -- slowing the craft from 13,000 mph to 0 mph and then deploying, detaching and avoiding collision with the supersonic parachute for starters -- that it's a wonder the government ever signed off on the project. If it all does come off without a hitch, however, the ladies and gents down at Pasadena's Jet Propulsion Laboratory certainly deserve several thousand bottles of the finest bubbly taxpayers' money can buy. Click on past the break to gape at the sequence of engineering feats required to make this landing on terra incognita.

Continue reading NASA's Seven Minutes of Terror: Curiosity's precarious Mars landing explained (video)

NASA's Seven Minutes of Terror: Curiosity's precarious Mars landing explained (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 21:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ESA team builds self-piloting rover in six months, tests it in Chilean desert

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ESA team builds self-piloting rover in six months, tests it in Chilean desert

Chile's Atacama Desert might not be true Martian territory, but it's close enough for the European Space Agency's new rover. Built by a crack engineering team in just six months, the Seeker rover was created to autonomously roam 6 km of Mars-like terrain and trace its way back. The Seeker just wrapped up a two week gauntlet in the Chilean wasteland using ol' fashioned dead reckoning and stereoscopic vision to find its way, compiling a 3D map of its surroundings as it puttered along. The full-scale rover wandered the arid terrain on its lonesome until temperatures forced it to stop after trekking 5.1 km. The red planet won't welcome an ESA rover until 2018, but those jonesin' for news from Martian soil should keep their eyes peeled for Curiosity's August touchdown.

ESA team builds self-piloting rover in six months, tests it in Chilean desert originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 05:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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