Mars rover Curiosity completes first drilling into Mars rock
10 Feb, 2013
In a Mars first, the Curiosity rover drilled into a rock and prepared to dump a pinch of powder into its onboard laboratories for closer inspection.
Image: This image released by NASA shows the hole in a rock called 'John Klein' where the Curocity rover conducted its first sample drilling on Mars on Sol 182, Curiosity's 182nd Martian day of operations. The image was obtained by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Sol 182. The sample-collection hole is 0.63 inch (1.6 centimeters) in diameter and 2.5 inches (6.4 centimeters) deep. The 'mini drill' test hole near it is the same diameter, with a depth of 0.8 inch (2 centimeters).