NASA Prepares For Mission To Mars:
On Monday, August 6th, the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft will place the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars. Curiosity’s main assignment is to investigate whether its study area has ever offered environmental conditions favorable for microbial life.
When Curiosity lands beside a mountain inside a crater at about 1:31 a.m. EDT, Aug. 6 (10:31 p.m. PDT Aug. 5), the 1-ton rover’s two-year prime mission on the surface of Mars will begin. However, one of the rover’s 10 science instruments, the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD), already has logged 221 days collecting data since the spacecraft was launched on its trip to Mars on Nov. 26, 2011.
NASA will host the Curiosity events via social media platforms. To join and track the conversation online during the NASA Socials, follow the Twitter hashtag #NASASocial. Use and reference the #MSL hashtag for mission updates. NASA will be taking questions from social media users during select news conferences and other televised news events using the hashtag #askNASA.
For more information on the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/msl
The public can follow the mission on Facebook and Twitter at:
http://www.facebook.com/marscuriosity
and
http://www.twitter.com/marscuriosity
For information about connecting and collaborating with NASA, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/connect
For NASA TV streaming video, schedules and downlink information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
