The Mars Science Laboratory runs on a fat budget of $2.5 billion and is on schedule to launch November 26 and have Curiosity on the surface of Mars in August 2012. The robot’s main mission will be to figure out if Mars is, or ever has been, capable of supporting microbial life. Right now, Curiosity sits near the far wall in the laboratory; it lies on its back with its six wheels removed. Technicians are fine-tuning its insides. More specifically, they’re reworking some of its avionics and cabling.
