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US rover to scout for Mars' habitability
Sunday November 27, 2011 10:37:06 AM,
Agencies
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Washington: A
nuclear-powered US rover was launched to help assess Mars'
habitability.
The car-sized rover, atop an Atlas V rocket, blasted off at 10.02
a.m. Saturday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, Xinhua reported.
"Liftoff of the Atlas V with Curiosity, seeking clues to the
planetary puzzle about life on Mars," said NASA commentator George
Diller as the white rocket soared skyward.
The rover, nicknamed Curiosity, will journey for over eight
months, covering 556 million km, before touching down on Mars in
August 2012.
"A signal from the spacecraft ... has been received by officials
on the ground," NASA announced an hour after liftoff.
At nearly a tonne, the six-wheeled vehicle, also known as the Mars
Science Laboratory, dwarfs all previous robots sent to the surface
of the planet. It is about twice as long and more than five times
as heavy as any previous Mars rover.
Its 10 science instruments include two for ingesting and analyzing
samples of powdered rock delivered by the rover's robotic arm.
During a prime mission lasting one Martian year -- nearly two
Earth years -- researchers will use the rover's tools to study
whether the landing region has had environmental conditions
favourable for supporting microbial life and favourable for
preserving clues about whether life existed.
Curiosity is the first instrument of its kind, and largest, most
scientifically capable spacecraft ever destined for the surface of
another planet.
It is equipped with a generator that converts heat from the
natural decay of a non-weapons-grade plutonium into electricity.
The electricity will power rover systems and keep it warm in an
environment where average temperatures are minus 64 degrees
Fahrenheit.
The $2.5-billion project "is an incredibly important flagship
mission for this agency ... as important as Hubble (space
telescope)," observed Doug McCuistion, NASA's Mars exploration
program director.
Its launch comes at a time when NASA -- still struggling to find
its way after the retirement of America's iconic shuttle fleet --
is anxious to exhibit its technological competence and prowess.
Curiosity will land near the base of a layered mountain five
kilometers high inside the Gale Crater on Mars. The crater spans
an area as large as Connecticut and Rhode Island combined.
Planetary geologists are intrigued because data from the US Mars
Reconnaissance Orbiter suggest the low-lying crater floor once was
wet with water.
Scientists also think the site might be rife with "organics" --
carbonaceous compounds that are key chemical building blocks for
life.
Life on Earth emerges when liquid water is combined with a source
of energy, such as sunlight, and carbon compounds.
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