Landing the Curiosity rover on Mars was probably the most delicate, complex and not to mention impressive things humanity has achieved in recent years - if ever.
But Nasa are not ones to rest on their laurels. Oh no, they're already working out how to land bigger and possibly people-carrying spacecraft on the surface of the red planet.
Next month testing will begin on their 'Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator' (LDSD), an inflatable saucer-shaped delivery system.
While the Curiosity landing involved numerous rockets and sky-trains, Nasa are reverting back to the trusty old parachute method for these new tests.
Really, really big ones.
When deployed the LDSD will be 30.5 metres wide.
The investigators are conducting design verification tests through 2013. The first supersonic flight tests are set for 2014 and 2015.
Once tested, the devices will enable missions that maximise the capability of current launch vehicles, and could be used in Mars missions launching as early as 2018.
Mars Curiosity Mission In Pictures
(01 of25)
MAHLI's First Night Imaging of Martian Rock, White LightingThis image of a Martian rock illuminated by white-light LEDs (light emitting diodes) is part of the first set of nighttime images taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera at the end of the robotic arm of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity. MAHLI took the images on Jan. 22, 2012 (PST), after dark on the 165th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars. This rock target in the "Yellowknife Bay" area of Mars' Gale Crater is called "Sayunei." The image covers an area about 1.3 inches by 1 inch (3.4 by 2.5 centimeters). The illumination came from one of MAHLI's two groups of white LED pairs. This allowed surface features to cast shadows and provide textural detail. White-light LED illumination was also used for a nighttime image of MAHLI's calibration target, shown at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/multimedia/pia16713.html . Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
(02 of25)
An image provided by NASA shows the robotic arm of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity with the first rock touched by an instrument on the arm. The rover's right Navigation Camera made the image on Sept. 22, 2012. Curiosity placed the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer instrument onto the rock to assess what chemical elements were present in the rock. The rock is named "Jake Matijevic" in commemoration of influential Mars-rover engineer Jacob Matijevic. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(03 of25)
This Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2012 photo provided by NASA shows a rock about 8 feet (2.5 meters) in front of the Curiosity rover on Mars. The rock is about 10 inches (25 centimeters) tall and 16 inches (40 centimeters) wide. The team has assessed it as a suitable target for the first use of Curiosity's contact instruments on a rock, and named it after the late Jacob Matijevic, who was the surface operations systems chief engineer for the Mars Science Laboratory Project and the project's Curiosity rover. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech) The rock has been named "Jake Matijevic." This commemorates Jacob Matijevic (1947-2012), who was the surface operations systems chief engineer for the Mars Science Laboratory Project and the project's Curiosity rover. He was also a leading engineer for all of the previous NASA Mars rovers: Sojourner, Spirit and Opportunity. Curiosity's contact instruments are on a turret at the end of the rover's arm. They are the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer for reading a target's elemental composition and the Mars Hand Lens Imager for close-up imaging. (credit:AP)
(04 of25)
This image provided by NASA shows the Curiosity rover's three left wheels. Since landing on Mars on Aug. 5, 2012, Curiosity has driven more than the length of a football field. It will resume driving this week after it completes its health checkups. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(05 of25)
TO PROVIDE AND ALTERNATE CROP - This handout image provided by NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona, shows tracks from the first drives of NASA's Curiosity rover are visible in this image captured by the High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The rover is seen where the tracks end. The image's color has been enhanced to show the surface details better. The two marks seen near the site where the rover landed formed when reddish surface dust was blown away by the rover's descent stage, revealing darker basaltic sands underneath. Similarly, the tracks appear darker where the rover's wheels disturbed the top layer of dust. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona) Observing the tracks over time will provide information on how the surface changes as dust is deposited and eroded. (credit:AP)
(06 of25)
This handout photo provided by NASA/JPL-Caltech shows the surroundings of the location where NASA Mars rover Curiosity arrived on Sept. 4, 2012. It is a mosaic of images taken by Curiosity's Navigation Camera (Navcam) following the Sol 29 drive of 100 feet. Tracks from the drive are visible in the image. For scale, Curiosity leaves parallel tracks about 9 feet apart. The rover Curiosity is making its mark on Mars. Its tracks are big enough to be seen from space. In just one month, the car-sized rover has driven 368 feet on the red planet. That's slightly more than the length of a football field. Curiosity's slightly zig-zaggy tire tracks were photographed from a NASA satellite circling Mars and also from the rover's rear-facing cameras. Curiosity landed on Aug. 5. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech) The panorama is centered to the north-northeast, with south-southwest at both ends. (credit:AP)
(07 of25)
This image released by NASA on Wednesday Aug. 29,2012 shows Curiosity's wheels after it made its third drive on Mars. The six-wheel rover landed on Aug. 5, 2012 on a mission to study the red planet's environment. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(08 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, a chapter of the layered geological history of Mars is laid bare in this color image from NASA's Curiosity rover showing the base of Mount Sharp, the rover's eventual science destination. The image is a portion of a larger image taken by Curiosity's 100-millimeter Mast Camera on Aug. 23, 2012. Scientists enhanced the color in one version to show the Martian scene under the lighting conditions we have on Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain. The pointy mound in the center of the image, looming above the rover-sized rock, is about 1,000 feet (300 meters) across and 300 feet (100 meters) high. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
(09 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, An image from a test series used to characterize the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover taken on Aug. 23, 2012, looking south-southwest from the rover's landing site. The 100-millimeter Mastcam has three times better resolution than Curiosity's 34-millimeter Mastcam, though it has a narrower field of view. The gravelly area around Curiosity's landing site is visible in the foreground. Farther away, about a third of the way up from the bottom of the image, the terrain falls off into a depression (a swale). Beyond the swale, in the middle of the image, is the boulder-strewn, red-brown rim of a moderately-sized impact crater. Farther off in the distance, there are dark dunes and then the layered rock at the base of Mount Sharp. Some haze obscures the view, but the top ridge, depicted in this image, is 10 miles (16.2 kilometers) away. Scientists enhanced the color in one version to show the Martian scene under the lighting conditions we have on Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
(10 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, an image taken by the Mast Camera (MastCam) highlights the geology of Mount Sharp, a mountain inside Gale Crater, where the rover landed. Prior to the rover's landing on Mars, observations from orbiting satellites indicated that the lower reaches of Mount Sharp, below the line of white dots, are composed of relatively flat-lying strata that bear hydrated minerals. Those orbiter observations did not reveal hydrated minerals in the higher, overlying strata. The MastCam data now reveal a strong discontinuity in the strata above and below the line of white dots, agreeing with the data from orbit. Strata overlying the line of white dots are highly inclined (dipping from left to right) relative to lower, underlying strata. The inclination of these strata above the line of white dots is not obvious from orbit. This provides independent evidence that the absence of hydrated minerals on the upper reaches of Mount Sharp may coincide with a very different formation environment than lower on the slopes. The train of white dots may represent an "unconformity," or an area where the process of sedimentation stopped. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
(11 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, a chapter of the layered geological history of Mars is laid bare in this color image from NASA's Curiosity rover showing the base of Mount Sharp, the rover's eventual science destination. The image is a portion of a larger image taken by Curiosity's 100-millimeter Mast Camera on Aug. 23, 2012. Scientists enhanced the color in one version to show the Martian scene under the lighting conditions we have on Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain. The pointy mound in the center of the image, looming above the rover-sized rock, is about 1,000 feet (300 meters) across and 300 feet (100 meters) high. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
(12 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, a photo taken by the Mast Camera (MastCam) highlights the geology of Mount Sharp, a mountain inside Gale Crater, where the rover landed. Prior to the rover's landing on Mars, observations from orbiting satellites indicated that the lower reaches of Mount Sharp, below the line of white dots, are composed of relatively flat-lying strata that bear hydrated minerals. Those orbiter observations did not reveal hydrated minerals in the higher, overlying strata. The MastCam data now reveal a strong discontinuity in the strata above and below the line of white dots, agreeing with the data from orbit. Strata overlying the line of white dots are highly inclined (dipping from left to right) relative to lower, underlying strata. The inclination of these strata above the line of white dots is not obvious from orbit. This provides independent evidence that the absence of hydrated minerals on the upper reaches of Mount Sharp may coincide with a very different formation environment than lower on the slopes. The train of white dots may represent an "unconformity," or an area where the process of sedimentation stopped. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
MARS CURIOSITY(13 of25)
This image provided Sunday, Aug. 19, 2012, by NASA shows a close-up view of a Martian rock that the NASA rover Curiosity zapped at using its laser instrument. Curiosity landed on in a giant crater near Mars' equator on Aug. 5, 2012 on a two-year mission to determine whether the environment was habitable. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(14 of25)
This image released on Friday Aug. 17,2012 shows bedrocks that was exposed after Curiosity's rocket stage fired its engines that blew away soil from the Martian surface. The Mars rover is preparing to aim its laser next week at a rock in the first test of the instrument. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(15 of25)
This image provided by NASA shows a high-resolution 360-degree color panorama of Gale Crater taken by the Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars on August 5, 2012. A low-quality version was released earlier. Curiosity is on a two-year mission to study whether Gale could support microbial life. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(16 of25)
This image released by NASA on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2012, shows the edge of NASA's Curiosity rover, showing the shadow of the rover's now-upright mast in the center, and the arm's shadow at left. The navigation camera is used to help find the sun -- information that is needed for locating, and communicating, with Earth. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(17 of25)
In this image released by NASA on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2012, a self portrait of NASA's Curiosity rover was taken by its Navigation cameras, located on the now-upright mast. The camera snapped pictures 360-degrees around the rover. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(18 of25)
This image released on Tuesday Aug. 7,2012 by NASA shows the first color view of the north wall and rim of Gale Crater where NASA's rover Curiosity landed Sunday night. The picture was taken by the rover's camera at the end of its stowed robotic arm and appears fuzzy because of dust on the camera's cover. (AP Photo/NASA) (credit:AP)
(19 of25)
In this frame provided by NASA of a stop motion video taken during the NASA rover Mars landing, the heat shield falls away during Curiosity's descent to the surface of Mars on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS) (credit:AP)
(20 of25)
This image taken by NASA's Curiosity shows what lies ahead for the rover -- its main science target, informally called Mount Sharp. The rover's shadow can be seen in the foreground, and the dark bands beyond are dunes. Rising up in the distance is the highest peak of Mount Sharp at a height of about 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometers), taller than Mt. Whitney in California. The Curiosity team hopes to drive the rover to the mountain to investigate its lower layers, which scientists think hold clues to past environmental change. This image was captured by the rover's front left Hazard-Avoidance camera at full resolution shortly after it landed. It has not yet been linearized to remove the distorted appearance that results from its fisheye lens. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech) (credit:AP)
(21 of25)
In this photo released by NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona, NASA's Curiosity rover and its parachute, left, descend to the Martian surface on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012. The high-resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera captured this image of Curiosity while the orbiter was listening to transmissions from the rover. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona) (credit:AP)
(22 of25)
This late Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012 PDT photo made available by NASA shows the Curiosity rover, bottom, and its parachute descending to the surface from the vantage point of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. (AP Photo) (credit:AP)
(23 of25)
In this photo released by NASA's JPL, this is one of the first images taken by NASA's Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars the evening of Aug. 5 PDT ). It was taken with a "fisheye" wide-angle lens on the left "eye" of a stereo pair of Hazard-Avoidance cameras on the left-rear side of the rover. The image is one-half of full resolution. The clear dust cover that protected the camera during landing has been sprung open. Part of the spring that released the dust cover can be seen at the bottom right, near the rover's wheel. On the top left, part of the rover's power supply is visible. Some dust appears on the lens even with the dust cover off. The cameras are looking directly into the sun, so the top of the image is saturated. The lines across the top are an artifact called "blooming" that occurs in the camera's detector because of the saturation. As planned, the rover's early engineering images are lower resolution. Larger color images from other cameras are expected later in the week when the rover's mast, carrying high-resolution cameras, is deployed. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech) (credit:AP)
(24 of25)
This artist's rendering released by NASA/JPL-Caltech on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012, shows how NASA's Curiosity rover will communicate with Earth during landing. As the rover descends to the surface of Mars, it will send out two different types of data: basic radio-frequency tones that go directly to Earth (pink dots) and more complex UHF radio data (blue circles) that require relaying by orbiters. NASA's Odyssey orbiter will pick up the UHF signal and relay it immediately back to Earth, while NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will record the UHF data and play it back to Earth at a later time. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech ) (credit:AP)
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