Curiosity has punched into a new chapter on Mars, launching a drill campaign at the Atacama site as scientists zero in on layered-sulfate bedrock on Mount Sharp.

The update, published in NASA's Curiosity blog and written by planetary geologist Sharon Wilson Purdy, marks the rover's first look at this kind of Mount Sharp bedrock since it left the boxwork terrain behind. That shift matters. The science team wants to characterize the sulfate-rich layers and compare them with the landscapes Curiosity has already crossed, building a clearer picture of how conditions changed over time in Gale Crater.

“There was excitement in the air as the Curiosity Science Team kicked off a drill campaign at the Atacama site.”

Reports indicate the Atacama target gives researchers a fresh chance to sample material that may preserve clues about the planet's ancient environment. Layered sulfates have long drawn attention because they can point to the role of water, evaporation, and shifting chemistry in Mars' past. By drilling here, the mission can move beyond surface images and weathered rock faces to test what lies inside the bedrock itself.

Key Facts

  • Curiosity began a new drill campaign at the Atacama site on Mount Sharp.
  • The target is layered-sulfate bedrock, a key geological unit in Gale Crater.
  • NASA says this marks the first Mount Sharp layered-sulfate bedrock examined since the rover left the boxwork terrain.
  • The update covers mission activity from sols 4873 to 4878.

The moment also highlights Curiosity's endurance. More than a decade into its mission, the rover still reaches scientifically important targets and still feeds an evolving strategy on the ground. Each drill campaign carries extra weight because drilled samples can anchor broad theories in direct evidence, helping researchers sort out whether Mount Sharp recorded long-lived habitable settings, harsher dry periods, or some mix of both.

What comes next will decide how important Atacama becomes in Curiosity's long climb up Mount Sharp. Scientists will analyze the drill results, compare them with earlier findings, and use that data to guide the rover's next moves. If the chemistry or texture stands out, this site could sharpen one of Mars science's biggest questions: how and when the planet shifted from wetter conditions to the colder, drier world we see today.