What is the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)?
Q: What is the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)?
A: The MSL is a NASA mission to land and control a rover named Curiosity on the surface of the planet Mars.
Q: When was the MSL launched?
A: The MSL was launched on November 26, 2011.
Q: What did the MSL accomplish?
A: The MSL successfully completed the first-ever precision landing on Mars at Gale Crater on August 5, 2012 and began exploring the surface.
Q: What is the goal of Curiosity?
A: The goal of Curiosity is to study the history of Mars and see if it has ever had an environment that could support microbial life.
Q: What evidence did Curiosity find?
A: It found evidence that 3 Billion years ago there was once water and an environment that could support life, though not necessarily that it certainly did exist. It will also carefully look at samples scooped up from the soil and drilled powders from rocks.
Q: How does Curiosity compare to other rovers?
A: Curiosity is five times as heavy as Spirit or Opportunity and carries more than ten times their mass of scientific instruments .
Q: How was Curiosity launched?
A:It was launched by an Atlas V 541 rocket.
