The success of the Mars Curiosity rover continues. As this image just released by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory shows, Curiosity is now moving without any problem whatsoever.
You can clearly see the tracks in this part of a new 360-degree panorama. The rover started to move on August 22, according to the mission drivers. Its first move involved going forward about 4.5 metres, rotating 120 degrees and then reversing about 2.5 metres.
Curiosity is now apparently six metres away from its landing spot, which has now been named Bradbury Landing. It was named after Ray Bradbury, author of the 1950 Martian Chronicles short story collection that told the story of Mars colonisation.
You can also clearly see the marks left by the rockets of the sky crane that dropped Curiosity over Mars’ surface.