Mars Curiosity Rover's Drill Could Be Fixed Soon

NASA's Mars Curiosity rover could be back in action drilling rocks on the Red Planet after a mechanical problem knocked its drill out of commission a year and a half ago. The mission team plans to test a work-around after the drill at the end of its 7-foot robotic arm broke back in late 2016, and they're hopeful it will be successful.

The Curiosity rover uses a technique known as feed extended drilling (FED), and it involves drilling rock similar to how a human being would do it by using the force of the arm to drill into the rock. The new technique was tested Saturday night, May 19, although there is not yet word on how successful it is.

"This is our next big test to restore drilling closer to the way it worked before," Steven Lee, Curiosity deputy project manager at JPL, said in a statement. "Based on how it performs, we can fine-tune the process, trying things like increasing the amount of force we apply while drilling."

Curiosity is currently located on Mount Sharp, a geological feature it has been slowly climbing since September 2014 as it examines rocks for clues on the climate of ancient Mars. Its findings could be pivotal in scientists search for signs of past live on the Red Planet.

Lately, the rover has actually changed directions and headed down the mountain, which the team says is indicative of positive signs regarding the rover's drill.

"We've purposely driven backwards, because the team believes there's high value in drilling a distinct kind of rock that makes up a 200-foot-thick [about 60 m] layer below the ridge," Curiosity project scientist Ashwin Vasavada said in the statement. "We're fortunately in a position to drive back a short way and still pick up a target on the top of this layer."

If the team is successful in drilling sample, the team will start testing a "new process for delivering that sample to the rover's internal laboratories," the statement adds. And engineers will continue to tweak the drilling technique to improve on it.

If the drill test is successful, scientists would be able to examine a type of rock that would "fill a gap in the science team's knowledge about Mount Sharp," the statement notes.

"Every layer of Mount Sharp reveals a chapter in Mars' history. Without the drill, our first pass through this layer was like skimming the chapter. Now we get a chance to read it in detail," Vasavada added.

Image via NASA