--- title: TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger | TIME description: In this first episode of a new series, 'TIME Explains,' science editor Jeffrey Kluger tells us why we're spending so much time and money exploring the red planet canonical: https://time.com/video/5wSa3koN/ og:title: TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger og:description: In this first episode of a new series, 'TIME Explains,' science editor Jeffrey Kluger tells us why we're spending so much time and money exploring the red planet og:url: https://time.com/video/5wSa3koN/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/5wSa3koN/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger twitter:description: In this first episode of a new series, 'TIME Explains,' science editor Jeffrey Kluger tells us why we're spending so much time and money exploring the red planet twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/5wSa3koN/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger [Watch (HLS stream): TIME Explains: Mars, with Jeffrey Kluger](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/5wSa3koN.m3u8) (3:29)  _Published 2012-09-18. In this first episode of a new series, 'TIME Explains,' science editor Jeffrey Kluger tells us why we're spending so much time and money exploring the red planet_ --- Jul 27, 2023 3:27 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Victoria's Secret Owner Says Jeffrey Epstein Misappropriated 'Vast Sums' of His Money](/video/3XMVcQHu/) ### Victoria's Secret Owner Says Jeffrey Epstein Misappropriated 'Vast Sums' of His Money [Here's How Much You're Spending on Shoes MONEY](/video/z2PRkEH3/) ### Here's How Much You're Spending on Shoes MONEY [Jeffrey Kluger On The History And Importance of SpaceX](/video/ybJsMd73/) ### Jeffrey Kluger On The History And Importance of SpaceX --- ## Transcript The Mars Curiosity rover has now settled down on the red planet. It's the biggest and most ambitious space craft ever sent to Mars. Here's what you need to know. [ MUSIC ] The Curiosity rover is a one ton SUV sized laboratory with 15 different instruments on it able to analyze martian soil, air, potential biology and the possibility of water on or just below the surface. The US has had five other landers on the surface of Mars, two Vikings, three Rovers, and now Curiosity which is the largest of all of the rovers and it should be able to, to uncover more science than any of the rovers that have gone before. Curiosity works for about eight hours a day during the Martian daylight, and a team in Pasadena is always monitoring it. Now, it's important to remember that there is at least a 17 minute light gap between Mars and Earth. Which means that a command you send up now won't get there for 17 minutes. So, you can't simply drive the rover by joystick. What you have to do is plan exactly where it's going to go, upload a series of instructions, the rover will then execute those maneuvers on its own and send back a message when it's completed them. [ MUSIC ] The three biggest things Curiosity is looking for are signs of any life on Mars, either existing or in the past. It's also looking for new information on Martian meteorology, the planet does have an atmosphere after all. And Martian geology and what that can tell us about the formation of the planet in it's earliest ages. Going to Mars can do two things. All space endeavors produce some kinds of technological spinoffs. In the case of Mars there are some that might even have national security applications. Sniffing for isolated molecules of various elements. [ MUSIC ] For example that could be used on loading docks, at ports, and at airports to look for contraband. Much more importantly though, Mars gives us a look into the early solar system. There are eight planets in our solar system. Each is very different. Mars is the one that has the closest history to that of Earth. [ MUSIC ] The more closely we study Mars, the more we can learn about the evolution of Earthly biology and the evolution of our planet itself. We know simply from looking at Mars that it once was rich with water. There are river beds, there are deltas, there are deep depressions that were once either seas or even oceans. Mars dried up about 3. 5 billion years ago, but the billion that it was wet could have been enough for it to generate life. If we find life on Mars, we'll learn one very important thing. That life in the cosmos is easy. It takes hydrocarbons, it takes energy, its takes time, and at least for life as we know it, it takes water. All of those ingredients are abundantly available throughout the universe. They produce life on our planet. If we find that they can readily produce life on other planets, we come closer to realizing that we are surely not alone. 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