Source: The Guardian
For five weeks, the NASA Curiosity Rover has been sitting in the Gale Crater on Mars, sending high-definition pictures of the surface of Mars and patiently awaiting software installs that would allow the vehicle to begin to traverse the foreign terrain.
The mission has so far had no glitches, as the small vehicle sends and receives messages from Earth intended to direct its next maneuvers. These include collecting and analyzing soil samples, in search of microbial life forms that might prove the past existence of life on the Red Planet.
It seems like science fiction. Yet NASA scientists have launched and deployed a scientific laboratory on wheels, farther from Earth than ever before, and the mission shows signs of continued promise. When skeptics question the value of NASA, there is no better answer than to look to Curiosity, and see how much we stand to learn not only about life forms in our solar system, but about the potential of the scientific community in mapping our future.
For five weeks, the NASA Curiosity Rover has been sitting in the Gale Crater on Mars, sending high-definition pictures of the surface of Mars and patiently awaiting software installs that would allow the vehicle to begin to traverse the foreign terrain.
The mission has so far had no glitches, as the small vehicle sends and receives messages from Earth intended to direct its next maneuvers. These include collecting and analyzing soil samples, in search of microbial life forms that might prove the past existence of life on the Red Planet.
It seems like science fiction. Yet NASA scientists have launched and deployed a scientific laboratory on wheels, farther from Earth than ever before, and the mission shows signs of continued promise. When skeptics question the value of NASA, there is no better answer than to look to Curiosity, and see how much we stand to learn not only about life forms in our solar system, but about the potential of the scientific community in mapping our future.
This is so cool to me! I'm glad to hear that something is actually going right with outer space studies. I think it's important for us to educate ourselves and discover what's out there for us. It could be extremely helpful to us all. Maybe we shall soon learn the answer to the age old question: Does life exist on other planets? And I'm glad America is taking the lead in it all! USA USA USA!
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