Curiosity gets a gravimeter—repurposed instruments can now measure rock density

The Curiosity rover landed on Mars without a gravimeter on board. But researchers realized that its accelerometers--normally used to determine the position of the rover--could be repurposed to measure the density of the rock it was passing over. These measurements can help scientists understand how Gale Crater and Mt. Sharp came to be.

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CREDITS

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editor/animator/narrator
Chris Burns

supervising producer
Sarah Crespi

script
Chris Burns
Sarah Crespi

special thanks
Kevin Lewis

camera operator
Meagan Cantwell

citation
K. W. Lewis et al., Science 2019
DOI: 10.1126/science.aat0738

curiosity photos/footage
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/MSSS

mars atmosphere animation
NASA/MAVEN/Lunar and Planetary Institute

music
Chris Burns

Science,Magazine,Mars,Mars rover,curiosity,curiosity rover,NASA,JPL,JPL-Caltech,Gale,Gale crater,Mount Sharp,sediment,accelerometer,density,earthquake,marsquake,InSight,