NASA’s Curiosity Rover Turns 10: Here’s What It’s Learned (Mars News Report Aug. 5, 2022)

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover set out to answer a big question when it landed on the Red Planet 10 years ago: Could Mars have supported ancient life? Scientists have discovered the answer is yes and have been working to learn more about the planet’s past habitable environment.

In this Mars Report, Curiosity Deputy Project Scientist Abigail Fraeman provides an update on the rover’s capabilities a decade after landing in Gale Crater. Now, Curiosity is heading to an area that may help answer how long ancient life could have persisted on the Red Planet as Mars went through significant changes in the climate.

Read more about where Curiosity is currently exploring. Download a poster celebrating Curiosity’s 10 years on Mars here.

Some of the images in the video include color enhancement that exaggerate small changes in color from place to place in the Martian scene. This makes it easier for the science team to use their everyday experience to interpret the landscape. For instance, the sky on Mars would not actually look blue to a human explorer on the Red Planet, but pinkish.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS/JHU-APL

[Kevin_Kennelly]

Congrats to everyone at JPL.
You all deserve a hug.

[Sheaker]

Exploring Mars from Earth is probably one of the greatest experience for humans so far.

[CraigCholar]

Congratulations to the amazing team of people who planned, designed, built, launched, and currently operate the Curiosity Rover, which landed on Mars 10 years ago on Aug 5, 2012. It doesn't seem like a decade has passed. Time really does fly, and the older you are, the faster it flies!

[fuzukimaru]

1:03 17.5miles = 28.164km
1:08 2000ft = 609.6m

Congratulations to all the team members. The world is celebrating your success. Curiosity's achievement is an important event in human history.
I am amazed that it has already been 10 years since Curiosity's daring and successful landing on Mars. I am surprised that it has been 10 years since Curiosity's daring landing on Mars, because it is still a fresh surprise to me.
And I am grateful that you have been conducting scientific research on Mars successfully and successfully for the past 10 years.
I look forward to seeing more results from Curiosity in the future.

[OrbitalPlausch]

Thx for your Update & congratulations to the team!

[tcyta]

Don't try to fool me, that wheel is from the tiny people of Mars, not random sharp rock
In all seriousness tho, that is amazing how it already been 10 years

[KimberlyGreen]

I liked seeing Maggie in a garage setting with Abigail and Raquel. It really helped me understand the scale of the rover. Thank you.

[askarielad]

Yeahhh !!
Happy Birthday Curiosity !
What an amazing time to be alive !!

[Gdcat]

Happy bday curiosity! I hope yall get to have more fun!

[adarshjha]

Congrats guys!
I was 8 yo back then and a decade later, here I am :)

[PotteryLife]

A very short video for, "NASA’s Curiosity Rover Turns 10: Here’s What It’s Learned" headline.

[niallhamblin]

I love you NASA thanks for the positive news it's needed now more than ever! 🙏🙇🌹❤️

[KJJHN]

A thought occured to me the other night; #AskNASA; why doesn't NASA use weather balloons on Mars? They are lighter, cary a smoother camera, can be RC controlled like the Hindenburg, and have basically an endless supply of fuel. I hope they further research this idea instead of the 20 minute flight drone. Hours and days verses minutes. The drone is a neat idea though.

[amandahenderson]

Congratulations to curiosity and Maggie

[zinussan]

When curiosity is moving on mars, did it's identical rover also move on earth?
To simulate the same wear & tear for rovers on earth.

[darryllmarquizo]

Abigail was the woman from goodnight Oppy. She was a highschool back then when Oppy and Spirit was launched to Mars.

[waynetyson]

Flowing water here on earth tends to round the sharp edges of rocks as they tumble. The pix here don't seem to indicate that. Answers?

[mitchelledwards]

And yet to date no NASA engineer has thought to put a duster on the solar panel system @@@!!!!

[jeffdavis]

*Thanks **#NASA** **#JPL** for this video.*

[seankash]

JPL, Congratulations. You did it! You chose to be a more mature institution & published some unadulterated images of Mars in this video. It’s nice to see a blue sky! Thank you. It’d be interesting to learn about the piece of equipment that was able to photograph Curiosity from a few miles away shown at around 1:10.