Michael Meyer, director of Mars science at NASA Headquarters responded, "Today would have been Ray Bradbury's 92nd birthday. His books have truly inspired us. 'The Martial Chronicles' have inspired our curiosity and opened our minds to the possibility of life on Mars."
And, "In his honor, we declare the place that Curiosity touched down to be forever known as 'Bradbury Landing.' ... It harkens back to a time when ships landed on the shores of other new worlds to explore. And this place might, in fact, with its water reference, be even more apropos."
Ray Bradbury (August 22, 1920 – June 5, 2012) was an American science fiction, horror, fantasy, and mystery fiction writer. He is best known for such books as The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and Fahrenheit 451 (1953).
For more on his life, go to http://www.raybradbury.com/.
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And, "At the end of his performance Electrico reached out to the twelve-year-old Bradbury, touched the boy with his sword, and commanded, Live forever! Bradbury later said, I decided that was the greatest idea I had ever heard. I started writing every day. I never stopped."
And, with the naming of the Bradbury Landing, Curiosity is now stepping out for its first tentative exploration of the planet Mars.
Check out Universe Today's article "Watch Curiosity’s First Movements".
The article begins with, "She turned her right rear wheel in and turned her right rear wheel out in a sort of Hokey-Pokey-like action in preparation for actually moving inside Gale Crater. Yesterday, the Curiosity rover’s first movements was this “wiggle” of each of the four corner wheels for the first time. Curiosity Mission Manager Michael Watkins said this was a test of the steering actuators on the wheels, and was critical preparation for Curiosity’s first drive on Mars."
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech: This artist concept features NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Curiosity is being tested in preparation for launch in the fall of 2011. In this picture, the rover examines a rock on Mars with a set of tools at the end of the rover's arm, which extends about 2 meters (7 feet). Two instruments on the arm can study rocks up close. Also, a drill can collect sample material from inside of rocks and a scoop can pick up samples of soil. The arm can sieve the samples and deliver fine powder to instruments inside the rover for thorough analysis.
(http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/multimedia/images/?ImageID=3504).
