Layered Martian Outcrop 'Shaler' in 'Glenelg' Area PASADENA,
Calif. -- The NASA Mars rover Curiosity drove 63 feet (19
meters) northeastward early Monday, Dec. 10, approaching a step
down into a slightly lower area called "Yellowknife Bay," where
researchers intend to choose a rock to drill. The drive was
Curiosity's fourth consecutive driving day since leaving a site
near an outcrop called "Point Lake," where it arrived last
month. These drives totaled 260 feet (79 meters) and brought the
mission's total odometry to 0.37 mile (598 meters). The route
took the rover close to an outcrop called "Shaler," where
scientists used Curiosity's Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam)
instrument and Mast Camera (Mastcam) to assess the rock's
composition and observe its layering. Before departure from
Point Lake, a fourth sample of dusty sand that the rover had
been carrying from the "Rocknest" drift was ingested and
analyzed by Curiosity's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM)
instrument. Curiosity ended Monday's drive about 30 percent