Mars Rover Curiosity

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What to expect

In the course of our enduring quest for knowledge about ourselves and our universe, we haven't found answers to one of our most fundamental questions: Does life exist anywhere else in the universe? Ten years and billions of dollars in the making, the Mars rover Curiosity is poised to answer this all-important question.

Here, Rob Manning, the project's chief engineer, tells of bringing the groundbreaking spacecraft to life. Manning and his team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, tasked with designing a lander many times larger and more complex than any before, faced technical setbacks, fights over inadequate resources, and the challenges of leading an army of brilliant, passionate, and often frustrated experts.

Manning's fascinating personal account—which includes information from his exclusive interviews with leading Curiosity scientists—is packed with tales of revolutionary feats of science, technology, and engineering. Listeners experience firsthand the disappointment at encountering persistent technical problems, the agony of near defeat, the sense of victory at finding innovative solutions to these problems, the sheer terror of staking careers and reputations on a lander that couldn't be tested on Earth, and the rush of triumph at its successful touchdown on Mars on August 5, 2012. This is the story of persistence, dedication, and unrelenting curiosity.

Critics Review

  • “Manning’s just published
    account of years at NASA’s venerable Jet Propulsion Laboratory, co-written with
    bestselling nonfiction author William L. Simon, will resonate most with those
    who want an excellent inside take on the rigorous and often arduous task of
    designing interplanetary landers and the eureka moments that affords. Manning
    deserves credit for bringing his own sense of candor and humility to the
    prose.”

    Forbes.com
  • “In Mars Rover Curiosity: An Inside Account from Curiosity’s Chief Engineer,
    he (Rob Manning) and science writer William L. Simon describe a committed,
    collegial bunch of guys doing some pretty amazing science.”

    Washington Post
  • “In Mars Rover Curiosity, Manning and coauthor Simon offer a firsthand
    account of designing the most complex piece of machinery ever to land on
    another planet. Starting with a harebrained scheme and ending with a drive
    across the red dust of Gale Crater, the book deftly guides readers through the
    many setbacks, victories, and difficult decisions that came with planning an
    interplanetary mission.”

    Science News
  • “The book offers a detailed,
    compelling tale of the rover’s development from someone who was at the center
    of the effort. For those who want to know how the spacecraft sausage is made,
    this is the book for you.”

    Space Review
  • “This is a matchless
    behind-the-scenes account of intrepid engineers and scientists that banded
    together to explore far-away Mars. Fueled by their own inquisitiveness and moxie
    they overcame all odds—technical problems, bureaucratic barriers, even touches
    of self-doubt—to successfully land the NASA one-ton Curiosity rover on the Red Planet. It is a superb, fact- and
    fun-filled account of humans on the cutting-edge of opening up a frontier—one
    that is our future home-away-from-home, Mars.”

    Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 11 astronaut
  • “There’s nothing harder in
    planetary exploration than landing on the surface of a planet, and Rob Manning
    has given us a revealing and insightful behind-the-scenes story of the world’s
    most famous rover, Curiosity. Reading
    this account feels as if you are standing beside this engineer as he and the
    rest of the Curiosity team found
    solutions to one nail-biting technical challenge after another. This is an
    insightful testament about extraordinary dedication, passion, creativity, and
    perseverance—all required to dare such a mighty thing.”

    Charles Elachi, PhD, director, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

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