Curiosity rover
Curiosity Rover
As the twin MERs (Mars Exploration Rover) Spirit and Opportunity, now on the surface of Mars, Curiosity has six wheels and 17 cameras, some of which are mounted on a mast. Unlike the twin rovers, it carries a laser to vaporize a thin layer from the surface of a rock and analyze the elemental composition of the underlying materials. It then collects and crushes rock and soil samples for chemical analysis. Its design includes a suite of scientific instruments to identify organic compounds such as proteins, amino acids, and other acids and bases that attach themselves to carbon backbones and are essential to life as we know it.
A comparison between the characteristics of the twin rovers and Curiosity highlights the improvements of the latter:
| CURIOSITY ROVER | MARS EXPLORATION ROVER (MER) | |
|---|---|---|
| Mass (Launch/Entry/Rover) | 3900 / 2400 / 900 kg | 1077 / 841 / 179 kg |
| Power-Energy by SOL (Cruise/Surface) | 1000 solar-W / 2500 WHrs-RTG | 600 solar-W / 900 solar-WHrs |
| Mast height/Wheel base | 2.13 m / 1.9 m | 1.5 m / 1.4 m |
| Clearance/Wheel diameter | 0.66 m / 0.4 m | 0.3 m / 0.26 m |
| Landing site ellipse size Altitude max Latitude | 20 km x 20 km 2 km +60° to -60° | 150 km x 20 km 1.3 km +10° to -15° |
| Scientific Payload Mass | 75 kg | 6 kg |
| Mobility range (distance max) | 20 km | 600 m (> 7.7 km for SPIRIT and to this day over 30 km for Opportunity) |
