Curiosity Blog, Sols 5043-5049: Preparing to Drill at ‘Nazca’

Written by Lucy Lim, Planetary Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Earth planning date: Friday, Oct. 16, 2026 Following the Basque Lakes drill campaign, Curiosity has returned to a spot just a few meters away from the “Chiu. The institutional report frames the development in practical terms and ties it to the broader mission or observing effort.

The significance lies in Earth science becomes stronger when local observations can be placed inside a broader physical pattern that spans time and geography. The planet operates as a coupled system in which atmospheric, oceanic, cryospheric and solid-Earth processes interact across timescales from days to millions of years. A measurement that captures one variable at one location and one moment has limited interpretive value until it is embedded in the longer series and wider spatial coverage that allow natural variability to be separated from forced change. 16, 2026 Following the Basque Lakes drill campaign, Curiosity has returned to a spot just a few meters away from the “Chiu Chiu” block to conduct our next drill campaign. Normally the 150 LIBS laser shots from each sol’s observation are spaced out over a five-point raster at 30 shots per point, but this time we are concentrating all 150 laser shots.

Visit the Science Instruments page NASA’s Curiosity rover at the base of Mount Sharp NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS Share Details Last Updated Oct 28. 2026 Related Terms Blogs Explore More 2 min read Tinga’s Tale Article 1 day ago 3 min read Tracks Along the Longest Drive on Another World Article 7 days ago 3 min read Curiosity.

18, 2026, Sol 5048 (Martian day 5, 048 of the Mars Science Laboratory Mission), at 12: 19: 51 UTC. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS Written by Lucy Lim, Planetary Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Following the Basque Lakes drill campaign, Curiosity has returned to a spot.

Normally the 150 LIBS laser shots from each sol's observation are spaced out over a five-point raster at 30 shots per point, but this time we are concentrating all 150 laser shots. Since each laser shot vaporizes a very small amount of the rock to form a plasma, the 150-shot profile should penetrate approximately five times deeper than a normal 30-shot point.

The broader interest lies in linking the observation to climatic, geophysical or environmental dynamics that extend well beyond the immediate event or location. Earth science is unusual in that its most important questions operate on timescales that no single research career can observe directly, making the archival record, whether in ice, sediment, rock or satellite data, as important as any new measurement. Results that can be embedded in that record, and that either confirm or challenge the patterns it reveals, carry disproportionate scientific weight.

Capturing images of Phobos and the nearby sky when Phobos is full can show sunlight reflecting off the moon and scattering in the Martian atmosphere, providing a good way to. 2026 Related Terms Blogs Explore More 2 min read Tinga’s Tale Article 2 days ago 3 min read Tracks Along the Longest Drive on Another World Article 1 week ago 3 min read Curiosity.

Because the account originates with NASA News Releases, it functions best as a primary institutional report that is close to the data and operations, not as independent scientific validation. Institutional communications are produced by organizations with legitimate interests in presenting their work in a favorable light, which does not make them unreliable but does make them partial. Details that complicate the narrative, including instrument limitations, unexpected failures and results below projections, tend to be minimized relative to progress messages. Technical documentation and peer-reviewed publications, where they exist, provide the complementary layer that institutional releases cannot substitute.

The next step is to place the result inside longer time series and to compare it with independent instruments and independent sites. Earth system observations gain most of their interpretive power from network density and temporal depth, not from any single measurement however precise. Model simulations that assimilate the new data will help clarify whether the observation fits comfortably within known natural variability or represents a shift that existing models do not reproduce.

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