Its mission is to see whether Mars could ever have supported life. It's amazing to me how just in my lifetime the answer to this question went from maybe-in-fiction to hell-no back to oh yes!

Watch the landing live on Sunday night around midnight EDT.

One sidenote: projects like this have embraced social media to an astonishing extent. Check out the chit-chat between Curiosity and astronomer Neil deGrasse Tyson.

https://twitter.com/MarsCuriosity/status/231875335921233920

https://twitter.com/MarsCuriosity/status/231877406774923264

https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/231877469702062080

Hahaha! Human gets last laugh :)

You've made me philosophically wonder what the meaning of life is.

Are single called organisms elsewhere significant or are we seeking other conscious beings?

Mars, Curiosity has landed.

*blink* *blink*

WE JUST LANDED A ROBOT ON MARS! WOO HOO!!

I've been watching Olympics gymnastics all night.

CURIOSITY STUCK THE LANDING!

Curiosity travel 350 million miles for 8 months.

Cost: $2.5 billion.

"Hold still, Larry. It's taking another picture."