Mars Curiosity rover collects sample from base of Aeolis Mons

BBC : The Mars Curiosity rover, which has been exploring Gale Crater since it landed there in 2012, just drilled another hole into Martian rock. Although the rover has drilled several holes so far, its main target is Aeolis Mons, also called Mount Sharp, a tall mountain located at the center of the wide crater, toward which the rover has been traveling since it landed. Because of the enormous mound of sedimentary debris lying at the mountain’s base, researchers targeted the area for geological study. They hope that samples collected by Curiosity as it climbs up Mount Sharp will yield progressively younger sediments and, hence, clues to Mars’s geologic past. Earlier samples taken by Curiosity showed a high silica content and other evidence indicating that Mars may have had vast amounts of liquid water on its surface billions of years ago.