It’s not just a word for Nasa, but also the name for its inquisitive Rover. Aptly called ‘Curiosity’, the droid has been beaming back some really lonely images from a planet where no human has set foot, back to a crowded Earth for the last four years.
While strolling near the base of ‘Mount Sharp’, the rover has managed to capture some images which show the planet’s mountainous landscape, with scattered, purple colored rocks all around. Apparently, Curiosity’s Chemical and Minerology instrument has detected the presence of ‘Hermatite’ within these rocks, which has also been discovered in other rocks with similar appearance. The weather also helped, as absence of heavy winds and the sand it carries has allowed the rocks to reveal themselves in their bare naked colors, which are otherwise coated in Mars dust.
According to NASA officials, variations in color of the rocks hint at the diversity of their composition on lower Mount Sharp and studying this difference can possibly reveal more about the planet’s past. In the meanwhile, NASA officials have made good progress on picking a landing site for the Mars 2020 Rover, as the number has come down to a ‘high priority’ 8, from a list of 54 probable landing sites.
