New capabilities allow the rover to do science with less energy from its batteries.<\/p>\n
Thirteen years since Curiosity landed on Mars, engineers are finding ways to make the NASA rover even more productive. The six-wheeled robot has been given more autonomy and the ability to multitask \u2014 improvements designed to make the most of Curiosity\u2019s energy source, a multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG). Increased efficiency means the rover has ample power as it continues to decipher how the ancient Martian climate changed, transforming a world of lakes and rivers into the chilly desert it is today.<\/p>\n
Curiosity recently rolled into a region filled with boxwork formations<\/a>. These hardened ridges are believed to have been created by underground water billions of years ago. Stretching for miles on this part of Mount Sharp<\/a>, a 3-mile-tall (5-kilometer-tall) mountain, the formations might reveal whether microbial life could have survived in the Martian subsurface eons ago, extending the period of habitability farther into when the planet was drying out.<\/p>\n Carrying out this detective work involves a lot of energy. Besides driving and extending a robotic arm to study rocks and cliffsides, Curiosity has a radio, cameras, and 10 science instruments that all need power. So do the multiple heaters that keep electronics, mechanical parts, and instruments operating at their best. Past missions like the Spirit<\/a> and Opportunity<\/a> rovers and the InSight<\/a> lander relied on solar panels to recharge their batteries, but that technology always runs the risk of not receiving enough sunlight to provide power.<\/p>\n Instead, Curiosity and its younger sibling Perseverance<\/a> each use their MMRTG<\/a> nuclear power source, which relies on decaying plutonium pellets to create energy and recharge the rover\u2019s batteries. Providing ample power for the rovers\u2019 many science instruments, MMRTGs are known for their longevity (the twin Voyager<\/a> spacecraft have relied on RTGs<\/a> since 1977). But as the plutonium decays over time, it takes longer to recharge Curiosity\u2019s batteries, leaving less energy for science each day.<\/p>\n The team carefully manages the rover\u2019s daily power budget, factoring in every device that draws on the batteries. While these components were all tested extensively before launch, they are part of complex systems that reveal their quirks only after years in the extreme Martian environment. Dust, radiation, and sharp temperature swings bring out edge cases that engineers couldn\u2019t have expected.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were more like cautious parents earlier in the mission,\u201d said Reidar Larsen of NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which built and operates the rover. Larsen led a group of engineers who developed the new capabilities. \u201cIt\u2019s as if our teenage rover is maturing, and we\u2019re trusting it to take on more responsibility. As a kid, you might do one thing at a time, but as you become an adult, you learn to multitask.\u201d<\/p>\n Generally, JPL engineers send Curiosity a list of tasks to complete one by one before the rover ends its day with a nap to recharge. In 2021, the team began studying whether two or three rover tasks could be safely combined, reducing the amount of time Curiosity is active.<\/p>\n For example, Curiosity\u2019s radio regularly sends data and images to a passing orbiter, which relays them to Earth<\/a>. Could the rover talk to an orbiter while driving, moving its robotic arm, or snapping images? Consolidating tasks could shorten each day\u2019s plan, requiring less time with heaters on and instruments in a ready-to-use state, reducing the energy used. Testing showed Curiosity safely could, and all of these have now been successfully demonstrated on Mars.<\/p>\n Another trick involves letting Curiosity decide to nap if it finishes its tasks early. Engineers always pad their estimates for how long a day\u2019s activity will take just in case hiccups arise. Now, if Curiosity completes those activities ahead of the time allotted, it will go to sleep early.<\/p>\n By letting the rover manage when it naps, there is less recharging to do before the next day\u2019s plan. Even actions that trim just 10 or 20 minutes from a single activity add up over the long haul, maximizing the life of the MMRTG for more science and exploration down the road.<\/p>\n In fact, the team has been implementing other new capabilities on Curiosity for years. Several mechanical issues required a rework of how the robotic arm\u2019s rock-pulverizing drill <\/a>collects samples, and driving capabilities<\/a> have been enhanced with software updates. When a color filter wheel stopped turning on one of the two cameras mounted on Mastcam, Curiosity\u2019s swiveling \u201chead,\u201d the team developed a workaround<\/a> allowing them to capture the same beautiful panoramas.<\/p>\n JPL also developed an algorithm to reduce wear<\/a> on Curiosity\u2019s rock-battered wheels. And while engineers closely monitor any new damage, they aren\u2019t worried: After 22 miles (35 kilometers) and extensive research, it\u2019s clear that, despite some punctures, the wheels have years\u2019 worth of travel in them. (And in a worst-case scenario, Curiosity could remove the damaged part of the wheel\u2019s \u201ctread\u201d and still drive on the remaining part.)<\/p>\n Together, these measures are doing their job to keep Curiosity as busy as ever.<\/p>\n Curiosity was built by NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California. JPL leads the mission on behalf of NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate in Washington as part of NASA\u2019s Mars Exploration Program portfolio. Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego built and operates Mastcam.<\/p>\n For more about Curiosity, visit:<\/p>\n science.nasa.gov\/mission\/msl-curiosity<\/a><\/p>\n Andrew Good Karen Fox \/ Molly Wasser 2025-098<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New capabilities allow the rover to do science with less energy from its batteries. Thirteen years since Curiosity…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[49,48,33817,1845,33818,33819,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-49433","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-curiosity-rover","11":"tag-mars","12":"tag-mars-science-laboratory-msl","13":"tag-radioisotope-power-systems-rps","14":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-2433
andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov<\/a><\/p>\n
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov<\/a> \/ molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov<\/a><\/p>\n