Mars rover Curiosity makes first scoop, detects bright object

The Associated Press

Posted: Oct 9, 2012 12:31 AM ET

Last Updated: Oct 9, 2012 2:59 PM ET

NASA officials said the bright object the Mars rover found might be a part of the six-wheeled rover, but added they won't scoop more from until they determine that. (NASA/Associated Press)

NASA officials say the Curiosity rover has made its first scoop of the surface of planet Mars and has detected a bright object on the ground.

Officials said in a news release Monday that they suspect the object might be a part of the six-wheeled rover, but they won't sample or scoop anymore until they figure out what it is.

The Curiosity has already beamed back pictures of bedrock that suggest a fast-moving stream once flowed on the planet.

The rover landed Aug. 5 and is on a two-year, $2.5 billion mission to study whether microbial life could have existed on Mars in the past.

Today's Mars is a frozen desert, but previous geological studies suggest it was once warmer and wetter

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