After 13 years of exploring the Red Planet, NASA’s Curiosity rover is continuing to make discoveries
The Curiosity rover is learning new tricks that make it even more efficient at uncovering the secrets of Mars’ ancient past. With a steady power source and cutting-edge upgrades, the Curiosity rover is entering a new phase of discovery.
More innovative, faster, and more efficient
The Curiosity rover’s power comes from a multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG), a small nuclear battery that slowly decays over time.
While this power source is more reliable than solar panels used on earlier missions, it still requires careful energy management. Every task the Curiosity rover performs, from moving to analysing rock samples, uses power, so NASA engineers have always been cautious about how they spend each day’s energy budget.
Now, due to recent software upgrades and years of experience, Curiosity can combine tasks, such as sending data to an orbiter while also driving or taking photos. This multitasking reduces how long the rover needs to stay active each day, saving energy for future science operations.
The Curiosity rover can now “decide” when to take a nap. If it finishes its tasks early, it shuts down on its own rather than waiting for the next command. These small improvements are saving just 10 or 20 minutes at a time, adding up over months and years, preserving the MMRTG’s life and enabling more ambitious exploration.
Discovering Mars with upgraded tools
Over the years, the Curiosity rover has faced and overcome its share of challenges. Engineers have developed new methods to deal with worn wheels, mechanical hiccups in their drill, and even a broken camera filter.
Its driving ability has also been improved, including an algorithm that helps reduce wheel wear as it travels across jagged terrain. Despite having driven over 22 miles (35 kilometers), Curiosity’s wheels are still in good enough condition for many more miles of travel.
Recently, the Curiosity rover arrived at a region rich with unusual and scientifically valuable formations known as “boxwork.” These intricate, lattice-like ridges are believed to have formed from underground water flows billions of years ago.
Stretching for miles across this section of Mount Sharp, the 3-mile-tall (5-kilometre-tall) central peak within Gale Crater, these hardened ridges may hold clues about the ancient Martian environment.
By studying these formations, scientists hope to determine if microbial life could have once survived beneath the surface, even as the Martian climate began to dry out. This could push the timeline of potential habitability further forward than previously believed, opening new windows into Mars’ complex geological and environmental history.
The Curiosity rover’s 13-year milestone is more than just a celebration of longevity; it marks a transition to a smarter, more capable era of exploration. Thanks to its durable power supply and evolving software, the rover is now performing more science in less time and adapting better to the harsh Martian environment.
With miles left to travel and fascinating terrain ahead, the Curiosity rover continues to pave the way for future missions.
