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NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has broken out its trusty drill again, pulling samples from deep within a Red Planet rock for the second time ever.

The 1-ton Curiosity rover bored 2.6 inches (6.6 centimeters) into a rock dubbed "Cumberland" on Sunday (May 19), NASA officials said. The resulting powdered sample will be delivered to the robot's onboard science instruments in the coming days.

Curiosity first used its drill to collect samples back in February, boring into a nearby rock called "John Klein." That operation revealed that ancient Mars was likely capable of supporting microbial life — a groundbreaking discovery that the mission team wants to confirm

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NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drilled into this rock target, "Cumberland," on May 19, 2013, collecting a powdered sample of material from the rock's interior. Analysis of the Cumberland sample will check results from "John Klein," the first rock on Mars from which a sample was ever collected and analyzed.
CREDIT: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

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This pair of images from the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows the rock target "Cumberland" before and after Curiosity drilled into it to collect a sample for analysis. The diameter of the drilled hole is about 0.6 inch (1.6 centimeters). Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Quelle: NASA

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Update: 21.05.2013

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