Government IT: NASA Curiosity Rover Beams Back Stunning Mars Views

NASA's latest mission to Mars, the car-sized rover Curiosity, has been hard at work on the red planet, beaming back stunning images of the Martian landscape and zapping rocks with lasers—we kid you not. The mission, which has generated a lot of talk and discussion in both the science and tech worlds in recent weeks, took another big step forward during the week of Aug. 20 when the rover actually moved for the first time, a critical test of Curiosity's maneuverability. The rover's goals include the investigation of the Martian climate and geology, and whether Mars could have ever supported life, including the investigation of the role of water and planetary habitability, and preparing for human exploration. NASA scientists have been elated with the mission's success so far, and the high-quality photos Curiosity has been sending back to Earth have been front-page news across the globe. Here, eWEEK, with help from the folks at NASA, offers an update on Curiosity and a look at the latest and greatest views of Mars so far.