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Six missions have operated on the Martian surface since 1997 — three simultaneously in 2022.
| Attribute | Curiosity (MSL) Mars Science Laboratory Active · Last updated 2026-06-12Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × | |
|---|---|---|
| Agency | NASA/JPL | ESA |
| Status | Active | upcoming |
| Vehicle type | rover | rover |
| Launch date | 2011-11-26 | NET late 2028 (Falcon Heavy from LC-39A) |
| Landing date | 2012-08-06 | TBD ~2030 (post-2028 launch window) |
| Landing site | Bradbury Landing, Gale Crater | Oxia Planum |
| Launch mass | 899 kgas of [1] | ~310 kgas of [2] |
| Power system | Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) | Solar panels + NASA-supplied radioisotope heater units (RHUs) for night/winter survival |
| Instruments | 10 science instrumentsas of [1]Mastcam, ChemCam, MAHLI, APXS, CheMin, SAM, DAN, REMS, RAD, MARDI | 9 Pasteur payload instruments + 2 m sub-surface drillas of [2]Includes PanCam, ISEM, CLUPI, WISDOM radar, ADRON-RM, Ma_MISS, MicrOmega, RLS Raman, MOMA organic molecule analyser |
| Distance traveled | 36.86 kmas of [3]Actively driving; figure grows with each drive ↑ Farthest | — |
| Mission outcome | Confirmed ancient habitable environment at Gale Crater — lake sediments billions of years old with all ingredients for life. Discovered complex organic molecules and seasonal methane fluctuations. Still driving as of June 2026 (~4,921 sols, 36.86 km), ascending the foothills of Mount Sharp. | Europe's first Mars rover, designed to drill 2 m below the surface — deeper than any previous Mars mission — to search for biosignatures shielded from surface radiation. After the 2022 suspension of Russian cooperation, ESA rebuilt the mission with NASA support: on April 16, 2026, NASA formally began implementation of its contributions (Falcon Heavy launch services from LC-39A, braking engines for the landing platform, and radioisotope heater units), targeting a late-2028 launch and a ~2030 landing at Oxia Planum. |
All 6 surface vehicles with primary-source citations from NASA JPL, NASA NSSDCA, and CNSA. Pure URL state — bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.