Curiosity completes 49th drill hole, Nazca

1. 09:05
   NASA

   Curiosity Completes 49th Drill Hole 'Nazca' at Sols 5050-5055

   NASA's Curiosity rover successfully drilled its 49th drill hole, 'Nazca,' during Sols 5050-5055 after passing wheel stability and preload tests. The target was disc-shaped inclusions in the rock suspected to be crystals.

1. 13:39
   NASA

   Curiosity Mars rover Sols 5043-5049: Preparing to drill at 'Nazca'

   After completing the Basque Lakes drilling campaign, NASA's Curiosity Mars rover returned to a spot a few meters from the 'Chiu Chiu' rock block to prepare for its next drilling campaign at the newly named 'Nazca' target. Before the pre-drill payload test, the team scheduled MAHLI quantitative relief model observations and a ChemCam LIBS 150-shot laser depth profile experiment to characterize the 'disc-and-needle' crystal morphology. The plan also includes nighttime imaging of Phobos to estimate the size of Martian cloud particles.

The trend compares participants observed throughout the same period, so its range may be smaller than the current interest count. Move or tap to inspect each hour; use the arrow keys on a keyboard.