Weighing as much as a small car a rover named Curiosity rolls quietly around Mars. Scientific instruments pack its body and cluster at the end of a mechanical arm. An arrangement of lenses and instruments tops its mast like a face. To the many NASA workers involved in Curiosity’s mission on Mars the rover is not simply a robot but an astronaut bravely exploring an alien place. Curiosity’s instruments collect data and its cameras take images of the Mars landscape including self-portraits in vivid color and detail. As it roams and explores Curiosity will help find the answers to such age-old questions as has there ever been life on Mars Could there be one day