NASA press conference: first color photos from Curiosity

Awwwww yeah, science baby. You need to check out this Youtube video to see — in high-def, if you choose to view it in that resolution — the entirety of Curiosity’s first day on Mars.

Fabulous. And the technology that we managed to safely deposit on another planet is simply the best way to actually examine this planet. I expect great things from this project. Even if it turns out there’s nothing special about Mars, even if it turns out to be nothing but a rust ball, we’re actually exploring and collecting data on another fucking planet. That’s… big. That’s astronomically big. Hells yes.

{advertisement}
NASA press conference: first color photos from Curiosity
{advertisement}

5 thoughts on “NASA press conference: first color photos from Curiosity

  1. 1

    Damn you, Jason! This looks incredibly interesting, but I need to go to sleep. O_O

    But don’t think I’ve been defeated; I will return tomorrow to put my plot into motion: to take over the world by watching Mars Curiosity Youtube videos! Mwahahahahaha!

  2. 3

    Repost of comment left at the tentacle tips of Digital Cuttlefish:

    The successful landing of Curiosity, Rube Goldbergesque as is seemed, is just another testament of human ability. As wonderful as the previous three rovers were, this one promises to be a distinct cut above them. I love the fact that it is nuclear powered and will not have to hibernate during six months or more of Martian winter. And it has a friggin Lazer!

    I’ve been through a lot of comment threads on news feeds and read complaints of the (relative) poor quality of the first images. This despite the fact that the articles all explain the existence of dust covers and the slow and deliberate deployment of the on board systems. Amazing, innit, how many people think that they should be rewarded instantly.

    Over the coming two years, and more, I confidently predict, this buggy with its laboratories and sensors will inform us of the nature of another world to a degree we have been longing for. This mission will flesh out the clues that Sojourner and Spirit and Opportunity have merely provided a skeleton. While cautious scientists will not, for the most part, make blanket proclamations regarding the current presence of life on Mars it is certain that Curiosity will inform us as to the suitability of a favorable environment in the past. Using that information coupled with what previous missions have taught us, we can begin to make sound conjectures about the question of life existing off Earth. I think the conclusions will be tantalizing.

    We have discovered on our own world that life is incredibly tenacious and inventive, inhabiting places where humans and most familiar lifeforms would wither and die quite quickly. Still, there they are. Given such surprising perspicacity here on our planet any discovery of either accommodating environs or indirect evidence (how ’bout direct!) of life on Mars will be less of a surprise than a confirmation that biology is an integral part of the cosmos as much as particle physics or the main sequence of stars. After all, stars and living organisms are intimately related, the one being progenitor and the other beneficiary.

    Hail! Curiosity! and mega hat tips to the many, many people who have invested so much of their lives in order to obtain this promising beginning. May they and their rover one day reach the summit of Mount Sharp. I can hardly wait to see that panorama!

    On the cusp, we are. Just imagine the future . . .

  3. 5

    But… but… GODDIDIT! Medical science doesn’t cure disease, God does! Meteorological science doesn’t provide warnings of impending tornadoes so people can seek shelter, God does! Agricultural science doesn’t create pest and drought resistant crops that provide higher, more nutritious yields, God does! It therefore follows that God built the probe, carried magically to Mars, landed it gently and is now watching over it to keep it safe.

    Right?

Comments are closed.