LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Ten months after Curiosity's daring Mars
landing, the NASA rover is finally about to pack up and head
toward the base of a mountain. Discoveries and longer-than-
expected scientific studies delayed the much-hyped drive to
Mount Sharp, where scientists are eager to examine the
tantalizing rock layers for signs of the chemical building
blocks of life. "Most people are getting a little antsy," deputy
project scientist Joy Crisp said Wednesday. Before Curiosity
begins the 5-mile trek, scientists plan to have it linger a few
weeks longer to observe some rocks at its current location,
where it has worked for the past six months. Since touching down
in Gale Crater near the Martian equator last year, Curiosity set
its sights on Mount Sharp, where images from space reveal
intriguing geology. Mission planners decided to make a pit stop
so Curiosity could test its kit of high-tech instruments on
Martian rocks and dirt. The detour paid off. While driving from
its landing site, the six-wheel, car-size r