Mars Curiosity Rover

Mars Curiosity Rover landed in August 2012 using a daring 'sky crane' maneuver, outperforming the Mars Pathfinder's airbag landing method. This car-sized rover confirmed that Mars once had liquid water, found organic molecules in 3.5-billion-year-old rocks, and detected seasonal methane fluctuations that may hint at biological processes. Designed for a 2-year mission, it's still exploring Gale Crater after over a decade, exceeding its planned lifespan by 500%. Curiosity proved Mars was once habitable, a breakthrough more impactful than any other Mars mission to date.