Curiosity zaps Mars for vital signs: ChemCam, designed by Lab team, looks for elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, all of which are crucial for life.
The successful capture of ChemCam's first 10 photos sets the stage for the first test bursts of the instrument's rock-zapping laser in the near future. "The successful delivery of these photos means we can begin efforts in earnest for the first images of Mars rocks by the ChemCam instrument and the first use of the instrument's laser." - Rock zapper ready after beaming back images of calibration targets. LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico, August 17, 2012—Members of the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover ChemCam team have received the first photos from the instrument's remote micro imager. The successful capture of ChemCam's first 10 photos sets the stage for the first test bursts of the instrument's rock-zapping laser in the near future. "The successful delivery of these photos means we can begin efforts in earnest for the first images of Mars rocks by the ChemCam instrument and the first use of the instrument's laser,” said Los Alamos National Laboratory planetary scientist Roger Wiens, Principal Investigator of the ChemCam Team. "We anticipate these next steps over the weekend. The next tasks for ChemCam—the inaugural laser burst and spectral reading—will help scientists determine the integrity of the ChemCam system and the pointing capability of the rover's mast, which supports ChemCam's laser and telescope.
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