Sep 28 2010
The Mars Science Laboratory mission of NASA features a ChemCam instrument that utilizes a pulsed laser beam for vaporizing a pinhead-size target.
This creates a light flash from plasma, the ionized material, which can be examined to detect chemical elements present in the target.
The ChemCam was designed and constructed by a French-U.S. team led by the Centre d'Étude Spatiale des Rayonnements of the Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, and the Centre National d'Études Spatiales, France; NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California; and Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The California Institute of Technology division, JPL controls the operations of the Mars Science Laboratory mission for the NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
The Mars Science Laboratory mission will land the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars in August 2012. The mission’s researchers will use the tools of the rover to analyze if the environmental conditions of the landing region are suitable for microbial life. The team will also check whether the environment is suitable for safeguarding clues about life existence.