Transcript Curiosity`s Year of Science

Following Our Curiosity
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
A Stunning Year of of Science in Gale Crater!
In August 2012,
Curiosity landed safely in Gale Crater.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
Artist’s Concept. NASA/JPL-Caltech
Since then, Curiosity has been scooping,
sampling, driving and drilling.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Our goal is to learn if Mars
could have supported microbial life.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Scientists chose Gale Crater because of
the interesting minerals found there…
NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/MSSS
Clays and sulfates require water for their formation.
…and the 3-mile (5-km) high mountain in
the center—Mount Sharp!
Interesting layers
NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/MSSS
Differences in the texture of the rock layers at the bottom of the mound suggest
environmental changes over time.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
Some of the questions are:
Could microbial life have
survived here?
How has water
shaped the
surface of Mars?
What can we learn
from studying
Martian rocks and
minerals?
Will the surface
radiation be
harmful to human
explorers?
Artist’s Concept. NASA/JPL-Caltech
Curiosity is loaded with tools
to answer these questions.
ChemCam
(Chemistry)
Mastcam
(Imaging)
RAD
APXS
(Chemistry)
(Radiation)
REMS
MAHLI
(Imaging)
(Weather)
DAN
(Subsurface
Hydrogen)
Drill
Scoop
Brush
Sieves
SAM
(Chemistry
and Isotopes)
CheMin
(Mineralogy)
MARDI
(Imaging)
But first, Curiosity had to survive
a hair-raising landing.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
The descent camera took a picture of the heat shield just after it was released.
Curiosity’s descent engines blew dust
and gravel off the ground just before
touching down.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
“Touchdown confirmed” = Music to Our Ears!
NASA/JPL-Caltech
First picture from Mars!
This panorama shows tracks leading away
from “Bradbury Landing.”
NASA/JPL-Caltech
The landing site was named after science fiction writer, Ray Bradbury,
an inspiration to many on the team.
From Bradbury Landing, Curiosity had a great view
of its primary destination--Mount Sharp.
These marks are called ‘scours’
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Mount Sharp rises in the distance, about 12 miles (20 km) away.
After health checks and software updates,
the team tested the first laser used on Mars,
on ‘Coronation’ rock.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/MSSS
By analyzing the sparks produced by the
laser, scientists learned it is basalt, a
volcanic rock common on Mars.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/IAS/MSSS
The vertical lines, or peaks, show the chemical elements
that are found in the rock.
Scientists used three tools to study this rock,
yielding richer data than ever possible.
Si
Al
10
sol34 Caltarget
90 min
sol46 JakeMatijevic 30 min
Mg
counts per second
Na
Fe
S
1
K
Ca
Cl
Ti
Mn
P
0.1
APXS
Spectra
Zn
Cr
Br
Ni
0.01
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Energy [keV]
NASA/JPL-Caltech/U. Guelph
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
LANL/IRAP/CNES/IAS/LPGN
One instrument showed that this pyramid-shaped rock is similar to basalts
on Earth produced by partial melting of the rock below the Earth’s surface.
Scientists can learn about how a rock was formed,
just by looking closely at the texture.
Close
Closer
Closest
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
These images were taken by the camera on Curiosity’s arm,
which can see in microscopic detail.
Curiosity’s cameras are not only used for science,
they can also help checkout the rover.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Even though she was dusty, Curiosity still got a ‘clean bill of health!’
After the Bradbury Landing studies, it
was time to start driving.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
Curiosity and its tracks as captured by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter,
200 miles overhead.
Curiosity headed toward Glenelg, where three
distinct terrain types meet.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
Pictures from orbit suggest that the rocks in the three areas are very different.
The science team would like to know why.
On the way to Glenelg, Curiosity discovered rocks
formed in ancient streambeds, called conglomerates.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Conglomerates are water-smoothed pebbles cemented together over time.
The rock “Link,” made of round pebbles
cemented together, confirmed that water
once flowed in Gale Crater.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Curiosity is driving on an area scattered with small
rocks and soil washed down from the northern crater
rim, called an alluvial fan.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UofA
Next, it was time to try Curiosity’s
scoop, one of the tools for collecting
samples.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Scooping sand or soil and drilling into rocks are two ways
Curiosity can get samples into the on-board instruments.
Scientists chose this windblown “sand shadow” at
the Rocknest site for the first sand scoops.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
This wheel
scuff
confirmed it
was safe to
scoop the
sand.
Some kick the
tires,
Curiosity
uses her
‘tires’ to do
the kicking.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
A close look at the sand reveals different textures and sizes.
Only the smallest grains can fit into the instruments.
The team put the sand into the Sample Analysis
on Mars (SAM) instrument to learn its makeup.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Goddard
Water
Oxygen
Carbon
Dioxide
Sulfate
Hot
Hotter
SAM’s tiny ovens heat the sample and measure the gases
that emerge at different temperatures during a heating cycle.
The CheMin instrument also ‘snacked’ on sand,
using X-rays to identify the mineral ingredients.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Ames
Rocknest sand is made of basaltic minerals,
evidence of past volcanic eruptions on Mars.
Curiosity took a
‘selfie’ at Rocknest,
made from 55 images
taken with the MAHLI
camera on the arm.
Four scoops and a
wheel scuff, a busy
few weeks!
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Curiosity’s Rover Environmental Monitoring Station
(REMS) is always looking at the weather.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/CAB(CSIC-INTA)
The ground temperature changes by 90°C (170 F) between day and night—
you would need to dress in layers!
REMS measurements show that the daily air pressure
changes as much as if you were driving from
Los Angeles to Denver.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/CAB(CSIC-INTA)/FMI/Ashima Research
Air pressure increases daily because the sun heats the ground.
This creates a high pressure ‘wave’ across Mars, following the sun.
Curiosity’s Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD)
measures high-energy radiation, helpful for planning
future human missions.
The red line
shows RAD’s
radiation data
Blue ‘peak’
indicates
higher air
pressure
NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI
NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI
When the atmosphere is thicker (higher pressure),
RAD measures less radiation on Mars’ surface.
A spacecraft carrying humans to Mars would
need layers of protection.
The light blue
bar shows that
on a 6 month
voyage to
Mars, human
explorers
would be
exposed to a
lot of radiation.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI
Curiosity’s Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN)
instrument shoots a stream of neutrons into the
soil, seeking water abundance beneath the rover.
Scientists
compare
Mars data
(red line)
with Earth
data (blue
line)
measured
before
launch.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Russian Space Research Institute
If hydrogen is present in the ground, it could be a sign of
water molecules trapped within minerals.
The SAM instrument, inside the rover,
can measure the chemical mix in Mars’ atmosphere.
Atmospheric Gas
Abundances
Measured by SAM
SAM found that
Mars’ atmosphere
has more ‘heavier’
versions or
isotopes, of the
gases.
Lighter isotopes
may have been
lost as the top of
Mars’ atmosphere
escapes into
space.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Goddard
Methane, which can be produced by living things,
has not been definitively detected.
Curiosity has completed its study of Yellowknife
Bay, a basin within the Glenelg region.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
Yellowknife Bay resembles
many desert areas on Earth.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
But Yellowknife was not always dry.
These rock layers form when fine soil
washes down a streambed and settles downstream.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
A closer look shows
different rock types,
fractures, and veins of
harder rock.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
These rocks contain tiny cracks filled with
calcium sulfate minerals left when the water that
flowed here dried up.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/IAS/
LPGN/CNRS/LGLyon/Planet-Terre
ChemCam Remote
Micro-Imager
NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/LPGNantes/CNRS; Earth image: LGLyon)
These rocks also contain ‘spherules,’
like little marbles, left when water is forced
through tiny holes in the rock.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Because of signs that water was once present
in Yellowknife Bay, scientists chose this site
for the first-ever drilling on Mars!
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
This drill site, named John Klein, shows the interesting cracks and veins.
As with other rocks,
the team uses several
tools to learn about
each target. The
ChemCam laser left
these tiny pits.
“Wernecke”
Sol 169
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Honeybee
Robotics/LANL/CNES
NASA/JPLCaltech/LANL/IRAP/CNES/LPGNantes/IAS/
This image shows Curiosity’s arm in drilling
position, as Mount Sharp looms in the distance.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/D. Bouic
NASA/JPLCaltech/LANL/CNES/IRAP/IAS/LPGN
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Two drill holes surrounded by grey powder. The inside
of the rock is very different than the surface.
The CheMin instrument found clay minerals
in the grey rock powder – clays form when rock
interacts with fresh water!
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Ames
NASA/JPL-Caltech/GSFC
SAM found elements, such as sulfur, that could have
provided energy for microbes if they lived at Gale.
Gale was a place that could have supported life.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/GSFC
Curiosity drilled a second rock, called
“Cumberland” to confirm science results found
at the first drill site.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
An Ancient Habitable Environment
at Yellowknife Bay
•The John Klein site was at the end of an ancient river or in a
lake bed that was sometimes full of water.
•Minerals found there form in water that was not too salty and
not too acidic. Was it ‘just right?’
•Key chemical ingredients for life are present, such as carbon,
hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur
•Minerals in various states of oxidation (or changing in the
presence of oxygen) could have been ‘eaten’ by primitive
microbes, if they were there.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Curiosity’s ultimate goal is to explore the layers
of the lower reaches of Mount Sharp.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
This boulder is the
size of Curiosity
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
However, there is a lot of ground to cover to get
there. Stay with us as we explore!