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Curiosity

active
Science ExplorationinterplanetaryCOSPAR 2011-070ALaunched 11/26/2011
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Mission & Launch
Launch Mission
MSL
Launch Vehicle
Atlas V 541
Launch Date
11/26/2011
Orbit & Mass
Orbit Class
interplanetary
Altitude
-43,554 km
Inclination
34.9 deg
Dry Mass
899 kg
Total Mass
3,839 kg
Payload Classification
Mission Type
Science Exploration
Payload Category
PLAN
Payload Class
C
Organizations
Operator
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Manufacturer
Lockheed Martin
Registry
COSPAR ID
2011-070A
UN Registration
ST/SG/SER.E/645
Track
Mentions
74
All verified mentions of this spacecraft in source documents.
0.0-5.0
Actions

MAVEN has served as a key communications relay for surface missions including the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers.

CapabilityValue 3.5Dec 15, 2025Maven stays silent after routine pass behind Mars

The loss of situational awareness has triggered a safe mode event for MAVEN that threatens data relay operations for Perseverance and Curiosity rovers.

Capability
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Dec 9, 2025
NASA Loses Contact with MAVEN Mars Orbiter

NASA previously tested the Curiosity rover's mobility system at Dumont Dunes in the Mojave Desert in 2012.

CapabilityGeneralValue 3.0Dec 5, 2025NASA desert drone trials refine navigation software for future Mars explorers

The chief rock type in Iceland is basalt, which has been found in Martian meteorites and by the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers.

GeneralValue 2.6Dec 1, 2025Destination: Mars. First Stop: Iceland?

Dimitra Atri leads a team from NYUAD's Space Exploration Laboratory examining data collected by NASA's Curiosity rover in Gale Crater.

GovernanceGeneralValue 1.9Nov 13, 2025Ancient Martian groundwater may have prolonged habitability beyond previous estimates

Background radiation from the Milky Way is always present on Mars, and NASA's Curiosity rover documented a solar storm last year that delivered the equivalent of 100 days of this background radiation in one day.

GeneralValue 3.0Nov 6, 2025NASA's ESCAPADE mission to Mars - twin UC Berkeley satellites dubbed Blue and Gold - will launch in early November

NASA's Curiosity rover discovered elemental sulfur in a cracked rock outcrop in 2024, marking the first such finding on Mars.

GeneralValue 4.0Sep 25, 2025Volcanic sulfur gases may have warmed early Mars and supported potential life

The first landing option uses previously flown entry, descent, and landing system designs, particularly the Sky-Crane method used by the Curiosity and Perseverance missions.

CapabilityValue 4.0Jan 8, 2025NASA will zwei Missionsszenarien für Mars-Probenrückholmission prüfen

The target of the millionth ChemCam shot was a rock fragment named Royce Lakes, which was broken by the Curiosity rover.

GeneralCapabilityValue 3.2Sep 5, 20241 million shots for ChemCam on Mars

Curiosity's instruments have collected extensive data on mineralogical and chemical compositions and studied the geology of Mars.

CapabilityGeneralValue 3.0Sep 5, 20241 million shots for ChemCam on Mars

Curiosity has been roving Mars for 12 years and has covered more than 32 km in Gale crater.

CapabilityGeneralValue 3.0Sep 5, 20241 million shots for ChemCam on Mars

The millionth ChemCam shot occurred on Sol 4281, the 4281st Martian day of the Curiosity mission.

CapabilityGeneralValue 4.2Sep 5, 20241 million shots for ChemCam on Mars

Sener Aerospace’s work has supported missions and programs including HRE, SEOSAT/Ingenio, CHIME, LSTM, Hubble, Rosetta, SMOS, Pléiades, Herschel & Planck, JUICE, Athena, Solar Orbiter, Proba-3, Gaia, BepiColombo, ExoMars, Curiosity, Euclid, LISA Pathfinder, MTG, FLEX, LOP Gateway, Mars2020, Earth Explorers, COPERNICUS, and Galileo.

GeneralCapabilityValue 2.3Feb 1, 2023Sener Aerospace’s scanner mechanisms contracted for the Forum mission by ESA

A 2028 ExoMars launch would require descent engines similar in size to those produced by Aerojet Rocketdyne for NASA Mars missions such as Curiosity and Perseverance because ESA lacks European descent engines of the right size for ExoMars.

CapabilityPlanValue 2.5May 3, 2022ExoMars official says launch unlikely before 2028

NASA's fiscal year 2023 budget proposal projected spending $45,000,000 on the Curiosity rover in 2023.

FinancialGeneralValue 4.0Apr 26, 2022NASA to repurpose OSIRIS-REx for second asteroid encounter

Teledyne’s Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) provides the electrical power that operates NASA’s Curiosity and Perseverance Mars rovers.

CapabilityGeneralValue 4.0Jan 2, 2022Teledyne Technologies’ Infrared Detectors Aboard The James Webb Space Telescope

Atlas V has supported GPS, SBIRS, and MUOS constellations and the Mars missions Curiosity, InSight, and Mars 2020.

GeneralCapabilityValue 3.0Apr 19, 2021Amazon Selects ULA For Kuiper Launches

Teledyne has a tradition of enabling the exploration of Mars, including technology contributions to the 2012 Mars rover Curiosity.

GeneralValue 2.0Feb 21, 2021Teledyne Technologies Image Sensors On Mars With Perseverance

The HiRISE camera provided a similar imaging capability for the Curiosity rover during its 2012 landing.

CapabilityValue 3.0Feb 19, 2021NASA’s Perseverance Rover Sends Sneak Peek of Mars Landing

Mars 2020’s landing will feature the same entry, descent, and landing sequence often called the “seven minutes of terror” experienced by the Curiosity rover in 2012.

PlanCapabilityValue 3.0Feb 18, 2021The multi-decade challenge of Mars Sample Return