BBC Focus Magazine

[M Paul Lloyd]

Bit of an update.
Nasa Prepares For Mars Mission Launch
Sky News By Thomas Moore, science correspondent

Final preparations are being made to launch the most sophisticated extra-terrestrial science laboratory ever built on a 350-million-mile trip to Mars.
Curiosity, a car-sized robotic rover, has been fixed into position on top of an Atlas rocket that is due to lift off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on November 25.
The six-wheel buggy is five times heavier than any previous explorer sent to Mars.
It is packed with a drill, laser, robotic arm and HD cameras to study the surface of the Red Planet in greater detail than any previous mission.
Doug McCuistion, director of the Mars Exploration Programme , said: "This is the largest and most complex piece of equipment ever put on another planet. It is a wonder of engineering."
The spacecraft is expected to reach Mars in August 2012, when its descent will initially be slowed by a parachute.
Rocket thrusters will then take over, allowing the craft to hover while a 'skycrane' lowers Curiosity 20 metres to the surface.
Project manager Pete Theisinger said the complex landing system was needed because the rover is too heavy for the airbag cushions used on previous missions.

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http://uk.news.yahoo.com/nasa-prepares- ... 58414.html