We live in a golden age of Mars exploration, an era of unprecedented knowledge brought to us by ingenious rovers and probes. Already we have learned that our diminutive neighbor once held water and perhaps life. Future missions will help determine where that water went and seek evidence deep beneath the surface of living creatures. One day, we might even go there ourselves. But how much have you kept up on the latest developments?
On Aug. 6, 2012, a new rover will touch down on Mars — bigger, badder and bristling with more gear than a spelunker convention. Although rocking the same suspension system and basic design, Curiosity, aka the “monster truck of science,” is so much heftier than its predecessors that NASA and JPL had to invent an entirely new way to land it: one part HALO jump, one part rocket-hovering sky crane. Its mission: investigate if the right conditions exist, or ever have, to support microbial life.