Spacecraft

Curiosity

Also Known As Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)

Mars Rover

Citation Formats

General Reference

Space and Astronomy Atlas. "Curiosity." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-space.interactiveatlas.org/spacecraft/curiosity-rover.

APA Style

Space and Astronomy Atlas. (n.d.). Curiosity. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-space.interactiveatlas.org/spacecraft/curiosity-rover

BibTeX

@misc{spaceandastronomyatlas-curiosity,
  author = {Space and Astronomy Atlas},
  title = {Curiosity},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-space.interactiveatlas.org/spacecraft/curiosity-rover},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

A car-sized robotic rover exploring Gale Crater on Mars for NASA since 2012, investigating whether the planet ever had conditions favorable for microbial life.

Facts

Spacecraft Type

Robotic Mars rover 1

Launch Date

2011-11-26 1

Manufacturer

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) 2

Status

Operational on the Martian surface as of the mid-2020s, well past its original planned mission length. 1

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Mars

Landed in Gale Crater in August 2012.

Source NASA Solar System Exploration

Operated By

NASA

Source NASA Solar System Exploration

Sources

1. NASA Solar System Exploration

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

2. Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)

Wikimedia FoundationCuriosity (rover), Wikipedia - specifications table

Quote, Curiosity (rover), Wikipedia - specifications table

Manufacturer: Jet Propulsion Laboratory

2. Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)

Wikimedia FoundationCuriosity (rover), Wikipedia - lead section

Quote, Curiosity (rover), Wikipedia - lead section

Curiosity is a Mars rover that is exploring Gale crater and Mount Sharp on Mars as part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission.

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