NASA’s Mars rover called Curiosity has begun rolling on what seems like a short six-mile trip to its main mission destination, Mount Sharp. The rover made to short jaunts on July 4 and July 7 completing the first two legs of the 6 mile trip to the base of Mount Sharp.
Prior to its trips on July 4 and July 7, Curiosity had only driven about one third of a mile since it landed on the surface of Mars in August of 2012. The latest journey of Curiosity marks one of the longest journeys a rover has ever made on the surface of the red planet.
On July 4, Curiosity drove 59 feet and on July 7, the rover drove 131 feet. Eventually Curiosity will drive up a portion of Mount Sharp but isn’t expected to climb all the way to the summit. The principal mission for Curiosity is to investigate the geological layers exposed by Mount Sharp.
via Computer World