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
© The Associated Press, 2012
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