Navigating Mars
Getting around Mars isn’t easy. But since Curiosity landed on the planet on August 5, 2012, the six-wheeled rover has driven more than two miles over some rocky terrain. Its tracks are now pointing southwest toward the entrance to a mountain called Mount Sharp. The mountain rises 18,000 feet above the northern floor of an ancient crater that formed some 3 billion years ago. Sediment deposits trapped within the mountain’s rock layers may hold clues to what Mars’s environment was like in the past and how it changed over time. Watch the video for a guided tour of Curiosity’s path to Mount Sharp.
Take an aerial tour of Curiosity's journey across the Red Planet.
Learn more about Curiosity's trek across Mars in this video.
After landing on Mars, Curiosity took a side trip to Yellowknife Bay. The rover is now driving toward its main destination, Mount Sharp.
Curiosity arrived at Yellowknife Bay in December 2012. Samples were collected and analyzed from a rock outcrop (yellow) found at this location.
A patch of flat-topped hills (yellow) make up an area of Mars called Murray Buttes, which Curiosity will explore in 2014.
To reach Mount Sharp, Curiosity will take a winding route (yellow) through Murray Buttes.
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Cover image courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Andrew Bodrov
Video courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/MSSS/ESA/DLR/FU Berlin
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Writer
- Kayvon Sharghi (USRA)
Release date
This page was originally published on Thursday, January 16, 2014.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:51 PM EDT.