Notre Dame geologist: Mars Curiosity Rover mission 'critical' for NASA | News | Notre Dame News | University of Notre Dame Skip To Content Skip To Navigation Skip To Search University of Notre Dame Notre Dame News Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Home Contact Search Menu Home › News › Notre Dame geologist: Mars Curiosity Rover mission 'critical' for NASA Notre Dame geologist: Mars Curiosity Rover mission 'critical' for NASA Published: August 03, 2012 Author: William G. Gilroy A depiction of NASA’s Curiosity rover. Curiosity, NASA’s newest Mars rover, is slated to touch down on the surface of the Red Planet early Monday (Aug. 6), at 1:31 a.m. EDT. The rover is the heart of NASA’s $2.5-billion Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission, which will try to determine if Mars is, or ever was, capable of supporting microbial life. Clive Neal, a University of Notre Dame planetary geologist, views the mission as a critical one for NASA. “The Mars Science Lab mission is groundbreaking in that it will be the first to use a ‘sky crane’ to deploy a large, automobile-sized payload to the surface of another planet,” Neal said. “Unfortunately, the mission was plagued by delays and large cost overruns, but given the nature of the new technology being developed, this should have been expected. Given the stress that NASA’s budget is currently under, a successful MSL mission will be needed in order to show Congress and the president that NASA is still the world leader in planetary exploration.” Curiosity was launched by NASA on Nov. 26, 2011. The six-wheeled rover is equipped with 10 science instruments and a wealth of high-tech camera gear. It will land beside Mount Sharp in the Gale Crater because scientists believe they will find water there. Clive Neal “The mission is well-equipped to look for organic molecules in a sequence of geology that has been defined from orbital data to be the most appropriate to preserve them, if they were ever present,” Neal said. “This is much better than the Viking landers of the 1970s, which did not have the orbital data to guide the landers to the most likely geology that would have preserved organic life. “If the mission is a success or a failure, it will impact NASA and planetary exploration.” Neal is a member and former chair of NASA’s Lunar Exploration Analysis Group, which is responsible for analyzing scientific, technical, commercial and operational issues associated with lunar exploration. The group provides findings from these analyses to NASA through the NASA Advisory Council. He also is a member of NASA’s Lunar Science Institute, which is a select team of scientists tasked with growing the nation’s technical capabilities in lunar science and developing educational opportunities in space science. Contact: Clive Neal, Clive.R.Neal.1@nd.edu Posted In: Research Home Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Related October 05, 2022 Astrophysicists find evidence for the presence of the first stars October 04, 2022 NIH awards $4 million grant to psychologists researching suicide prevention September 29, 2022 Notre Dame, Ukrainian Catholic University launch three new research grants September 27, 2022 Notre Dame, Trinity College Dublin engineers join to advance novel treatment for cystic fibrosis September 22, 2022 Climate-prepared countries are losing ground, latest ND-GAIN index shows For the Media Contact Office of Public Affairs and Communications Notre Dame News 500 Grace Hall Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Pinterest © 2022 University of Notre Dame Search Mobile App News Events Visit Accessibility Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn