The Curious Life of a Mars Rover | Nat Geo Live

How many stages does the Delta II rocket have to reach orbit?

• Two

• Three

• Four

• Five

What happens to the first stage of the rocket after it burns out?

• It continues to orbit Earth.

• It falls back to Earth's ocean and becomes an ecosystem for fish.

• It burns up in Earth's atmosphere.

• It travels to Mars with the spacecraft.

What temperature does the heat shield of the Mars rover reach during atmospheric entry?

• About the temperature of boiling water.

• About the temperature of Earth's atmosphere.

• About the surface temperature of the Sun.

• About the temperature of liquid nitrogen.

What caused the Spirit rover to stop communicating with Earth after touching the first rock?

• It ran out of battery power.

• It was damaged during landing.

• A large solar flare caused a computer issue.

• It encountered an unexpected Martian dust storm.

The Spirit and Opportunity rovers were designed to explore Mars for 90 days and travel up to 600 meters. How long did Opportunity actually operate on Mars?

• Less than 90 days

• About 5 years

• Over a decade

• Exactly 90 days

What is the name of the largest known volcano in our solar system, located on Mars?

• Mount Everest

• Olympus Mons

• Valles Marineris

• Gale Crater

What natural phenomenon on Mars helped extend the lifespan of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers by cleaning their solar arrays?

• Martian winds

• Dust storms

• Dust devils

• Solar flares

How did the Spirit rover discover evidence of water on Mars?

• It found a large lake.

• Its broken wheel dragged through the soil, revealing changes in salinity.

• It drilled deep into the ground and found ice.

• It observed clouds forming over ancient riverbeds.

How did the Curiosity rover safely land on the surface of Mars?

• It deployed a large parachute and then landed directly on its wheels.

• It used a sky crane system that lowered it to the surface with cables.

• It crashed into the surface and then self-assembled.

• It was carried by astronauts who placed it on the ground.

What is the main scientific goal of the Curiosity rover on Mars?

• To collect samples of Martian soil to bring back to Earth.

• To search for signs of past life or conditions that could have supported life.

• To build a human outpost for future missions.

• To map the entire surface of Mars in high resolution.