Gigantic ‘spiderwebs’ on Mars are the next big target for NASA’s Curiosity rover, agency reveals

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NASA’s Curiosity rover will soon explore a patch of spiderweb-like “boxwork” features on Mars. This photo, taken in 2006, shows a similar area to the one that the rover will explore. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona)

The ever-reliable Curiosity rover is about to begin a new quest to study giant “spiderwebs” on Mars’ surface, after successfully concluding its previous mission, NASA has announced. The web-like rocks span for miles and may hold secrets about the Red Planet’s watery past.

Over the last year, Curiosity has been exploring Gediz Vallis — a channel carved into the steep slopes of Mount Sharp at the heart of Gale Crater. During this stage of its 12-year mission on Mars, the rover made some important discoveries, including accidentally unveiling crystals of pure sulfur and finding “wavey” rocks left behind by an ancient lake . Mission scientists also first noticed a large hole in one of the rover’s wheels as the wandering robot traversed this region’s steep slopes .

But the rover’s time in Gediz Vallis is about to come to a close. On Nov. 18, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) released a final 360-degree “selfie” of the area taken by Curiosity as it prepared to head off on the next leg of its epic journey, which has already lasted a decade longer than initially expected.

Curiosity’s next target is a large collection of spiderweb-like surface features, known as “the boxwork,” spanning between 6 and 12 miles (10 and 20 kilometers) across. This unusual patchwork of zig-zagging rocks, or boxwork deposits, was first spotted decades ago but has never been studied up close, according to a JPL statement .

The web-like features should not be confused with the infamous “spiders on Mars” — a geological feature created when carbon dioxide ice on the planet’s surface sublimates , or turns into gas from a solid. Scientists recently recreated these strange features on Earth for the first time.

Related: 32 things on Mars that look like they shouldn’t be there

Curiosity has traveled more than 20 miles (33 km) on Mars since first landing in Gale Crater on Aug. 6, 2012. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)

Boxwork deposits are also found in caves on Earth. They form when calcite-rich water fills gaps … Read More