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The Mars Science Laboratory is the latest and most advanced NASA roving vehicle to explore the surface of Mars. The Curiosity rover has landed in Gale crater and will explore this region assessing conditions on the surface that might be hospitable to life and paving the way for later even more sophisticated exploration of the surface. This book describes the mission, its exploration and scientific objectives, studies leading to the design of the mission and the instruments that accomplish the objectives of the mission. This book is aimed at all those engaged in Martian studies as well as those interested in the origin of life in other environments. It will be a valuable reference for anyone who uses data from the Mars Science Laboratory. Previously published in Space Science Reviews journal, Vol. 170/1-4, 2012.

Mars Science Laboratory

Mars Science Laboratory Mission and Science Investigation.- Collecting Samples in Gale Crater, Mars; An Overview of the Mars Science Laboratory Sample Acquisition, Sample Processing and Handling System.- The Mars Science Laboratory Engineering Cameras.- The ChemCam Instrument Suite on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover: Body Unit and Combined System Tests.- The ChemCam Instrument Suite on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover: Science Objectives and Mast Unit Description.- Ceramic ChemCam Instrument Suite on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover: Science Objectives and Mast Unit Description.- Ceramic ChemCam Calibration Targets on Mars Science Laboratory.- Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) Investigation.- Calibration of the Mars Science Laboratory Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer.- Characterization and Calibration of the CheMin Mineralogical Instrument on Mars Science Laboratory.- The Sample Analysis at Mars Investigation and Instrument Suite.- The Mars Science Laboratory Organic Check Material.- The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) Investigation.- Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) Experiment Onboard NASA's Mars Science Laboratory.- REMS: The Environmental Sensor Suite for the Mars Science Laboratory Rover.- Selection of the Mars Science Laboratory Landing Site.- Surface Properties of the Mars Science Laboratory Candidate Landing Sites: Characterization from Orbit and Predictions.- Meter-Scale Slopes of Candidate MSL Landing Sites from Point Photoclinometry.- Assessment of Environments for Mars Science Laboratory Entry, Descent, and Surface Operations.- Empirical Estimates of Martian Surface Pressure in Support of the Landing of Mars Science Laboratory.