Curiosity's first image of her shadow (left) and her wheel (right) on Mars. Courtesy NASA/Mars Science Laboratory team.
Well, that was an amazing landing on Mars! The seven minutes of terror turned out to be a smooth operation that went off like clockwork. Mr. Spacewriter and I sat and marveled at the ease with with which the Curiosity rover settled down on Mars, ready to begin a series of surface explorations. Right now, as I type this, NASA’s administrator Charles Bolden is speaking about the mission, thanking the huge team around THIS planet for their hard work putting a very sophisticated rover on the RED Planet.
What’s up next? More images, more exploration, and a chance to figure out whether life has ever existed on Mars, and even more exciting, finding out just what conditions future human explorers will find on the planet.
When you read this, just remember this: you’re part of a species that can do great things. We need to keep doing them!
A larger version of Curiosity's shadow image. Courtesy NASA.
Gale Crater, where the Curiosity lander will touch down. Its landing ellipse is shown. Courtesy NASA.
I don’t know about you, but the run-up to the Mars Science Laboratory’s mission landing Curiosity on the Red Planet is really building up for me. I’ve watched that “Seven Minutes of Terror” video a few times now, and was glad to see Wil Wheaton (I’ve been a follower of his writing for some years now) as the “host” of the show.
So, now it’s down to the last couple of days before the lander sets its wheels down on Mars. I am SO hoping it makes a safe arrival. I remember back in the days when I worked at Sky & Telescope and I went out to JPL as part of a team to cover a Mars mission that failed (Mars Polar Lander). The disappointment among the scientists was more like grief, particularly in light of other successful missions. So, I’m really hoping that this one turns out well — the latest in a string of successful missions to Mars.
Come Sunday night, I’ll be glued to the tube, or my computer, watching for the successful landing. Will you be?
