— Ch. 1 · Touchdown In The Crater —
Curiosity (rover).
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
Curiosity touched down on Mars at 05:17:57 UTC on the 6th of August 2012. The landing site sat inside Gale crater near a location now called Bradbury Landing. This spot lay less than two kilometers from the center of the rover's original touchdown target after a journey spanning nearly eight months. The vehicle arrived via a complex sky crane system that lowered it gently to the surface using a tether. Engineers named the landing area after science fiction author Ray Bradbury on the 22nd of August 2012. The descent phase lasted only seven minutes yet required precise timing and coordination. Telemetry data streamed back to Earth through three orbiters including the 2001 Mars Odyssey and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Signals between the planet and Earth took an average of fourteen minutes and six seconds to travel. NASA television broadcast live video of the event during the late hours of the 6th of August 2012 Pacific Daylight Time. Over one thousand people gathered in New York City's Times Square to watch the broadcast on giant screens. Bobak Ferdowsi became an Internet celebrity for his Mohawk hairstyle with yellow stars worn during the televised broadcast. He gained forty-five thousand new followers on Twitter within days of the landing.
Goals For Climate And Life
The mission goals included investigating Martian climate and geology while assessing environmental conditions favorable for microbial life. Scientists aimed to determine whether Gale crater ever offered water or other resources needed for biology. The Mars Exploration Program established eight main scientific objectives covering biological and geological aspects. One goal involved determining the nature and inventory of organic carbon compounds found on the surface. Another objective focused on investigating chemical building blocks like carbon hydrogen nitrogen oxygen phosphorus and sulfur. Researchers also sought features representing effects of biological processes such as biosignatures and biomolecules. A fourth goal examined long-timescale atmospheric evolution over four billion years. The team planned to assess present state distribution and cycling of water and carbon dioxide across the landscape. Surface radiation measurements characterized galactic cosmic radiation solar proton events and secondary neutrons. These data points helped determine viability and shielding needs for potential human explorers. About one year into the surface mission the objectives evolved toward developing predictive models for preservation of organic compounds. This branch of paleontology is called taphonomy. The region explored has been compared to the Four Corners region of North American west.