* Photo: Mike Lorrig * Pull over, Spirit. Make way, Opportunity. There's a badder-ass rover rolling into Marsville, and it's big — like Mini Cooper big. Weighing 2,000 pounds (nearly three times the heft of its predecessors), the Mars Science Laboratory is nuclear powered and packed with gadgets never before seen on the Red Planet. Its mission: Assess Mars' past and present capacity to support life — from alien microbes to human explorers. MSL (prototype above, sans science gear) won't launch until fall 2009, but researchers are already arguing about where to land it. They have to pick the right spot because, well, life (on Mars) is at stake.
Landing Gear
The air bags that cushioned older rovers as they touched down wouldn't protect this oversize probe. NASA's solution: rocket-powered hovercrane, of course.
Laser Vaporizer
MSL can examine a sample from 30 feet away by vaporizing it. A spectrograph will then measure the light emitted from the free atoms to identify its elements.
Percussive Drill
If NASA wants a closer look, MSL will pulverize a rock with its rotary-percussive drill. A strawlike casing on the bit will capture dust and send it on to test chambers.
Onboard Lab
Handy spectrometers will search rock powder and gas samples for carbon. A radiation detector will help NASA decide if it's safe to send earthlings up there.
Neutron Gun
As it roves, MSL will shoot neutrons into the ground to find permafrost, which may have once been liquid water — the common denominator for life (as we know it).
Nuclear Power
A tiny piece of plutonium will produce enough heat to recharge the batteries each night. Total power required to operate MSL: 300 watts — same as a hand blender.
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