Curiosity Blog, Sols 4873-4878: Welcome to the Atacama Drill Target
Why this matters: new research or scientific developments with potential real-world impact.
Curiosity Navigation Curiosity Home Mission Overview Where is Curiosity? Mission Updates Science Overview Instruments Highlights Exploration Goals News and Features Multimedia Curiosity Raw Images Images Videos Audio Mosaics More Resources Mars Missions Mars Sample Return Mars Perseverance Rover Mars Curiosity Rover MAVEN Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Odyssey More Mars Missions Mars Home 2 min read Curiosity Blog, Sols 4873-4878: Welcome to the Atacama Drill Target NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity acquired this image using its Front Hazard Avoidance Camera (Front Hazcam) on April 23, 2026 — Sol 4874, or Martian day 4,874 of the Mars Science Laboratory mission — at 01:12:31 UTC. NASA/JPL-Caltech Written by Sharon Wilson Purdy, Planetary Geologist at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Earth planning date: Friday, April 24, 2026 There was excitement in the air as the Curiosity Science Team kicked off a drill campaign at the Atacama site to characterize the first Mount Sharp layered-sulfate bedrock since leaving the boxwork terrain. Monday was a three-sol plan (4873-4875) where we focused on “drill sol 1” activities that included a pre-load test on our drill target as well as triage contact science. APXS assembled a set of repeated observations on the Atacama drill target, and the coordinated MAHLI images taken with different lighting will provide an opportunity to detect possible changes between the datasets. Mastcam assembled stereo mosaics to document the Atacama drill site, investigate variations in the bedrock at “Kimsa Chata,” and characterize the layering within Paniri butte. Planning resumed Friday with another three-sol plan (4876-4878) that included the full drill and portion characterization related to “drill sols 2 and 3” activities. Mastcam planned stereo mosaics of rocks in the workspace including a laminated rock with an exposed edge named “Queen of the Andes,” a rock with polygonal fractures that was broken when the rover drove over it named “Cu