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In Three Years on Mars, the Curiosity Rover Has Traveled Just 11 Kilometers

And some other facts we learned from a Reddit AmA with the Curiosity team.
Rachel Pick
New York, US
Curiosity takes a selfie. Image: Curiosity/Twitter

Several members of NASA's Curiosity Mars rover team participated in a Reddit AmA today, in celebration of the rover's third "landiversary." Among the surprising answers? The rover has only traveled 11 kilometers in three years of exploration.

But when you think of the necessary thoroughness of the rover's research, and the time it needs to spend recharging, its snail's pace is more understandable. And the rover has unearthed some truly incredible discoveries: namely, there might still be life on Mars, deep below the planet's surface. Deputy project scientist Joy Crisp says "it's a long shot, but someday we might find life deeper on Mars. The environment on the surface of Mars today is quite harsh for life as we know it, but if life exists on Mars, it would be protected from radiation at depth and liquid water could be stable there too."

Mostly, Redditors wanted to know what discoveries team members were most excited about. Team member Fred Calef notes that almost all of the rocks the Curiosity has driven over were "water deposited," and public engagement representative Carolina cites the organic carbon found in Mars rocks as another welcome surprise.

According to the team, Curiosity has already well surpassed its expected lifespan of one year. The biggest threat to its longevity is simple wear and tear to the wheels. But Curiosity is going to be the blueprint for another rover that will launch in 2020, and engineers and scientists remain hopeful that information gleaned from this expedition will make the next rover stronger.

And what does the rover team think of privatized space exploration? Mission lead Nagin Cox says, "There is so much to be done in solar system exploration that it is great to have commercial companies jumping into the game. They can often address technical problems with a fresh perspective that is great for everyone." What a great attitude.