Section 1.3.2: Is there life on Mars?
Mars
There have been no manned missions to other planets, but a number of satellites have been sent to orbit them, and to land robotic probes.
In November 2011, the latest rover was sent to Mars. The Mars Curiosity is about the same size as a car and contains a number of different instruments for examining the rocks on the planet. Curiosity is moving along a planned route, drilling down into the surface to examine the rocks.
A self portrait of NASA's Mars Curiosity rover taken with its arm camera. For more information about the mission, see the NASA page. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems)
ACTIVITY: Take a look at Mars Curiosity on Twitter and see the pictures and information it has been sending down. This is accessible to view even if you don't have a Twitter account, but if you do, do follow them @marscuriosity (it may come up with a sign up to Twitter box but if you click the cross in the top right hand corner to get rid of it, you will be able to see the page).
Is there life on Mars?
ACTIVITY: Watch this video to learn about the possibilities for life on Mars