NASA To Broadcast Mars Rover Landing Live In Times Square

Hey! Who has been cutting donuts in the rover?

Some lucky folks will get to watch the historic Mars Rover landing live

NASA’s biggest Mars rover landing yet is about to hit Broadway. New Yorkers hoping to see the August 5-6 landing of NASA’s huge Mars rover Curiosity can head to Times Square on Sunday night to catch the rover’s touchdown on the Red Planet live on a giant LED television screen. NASA Television’s coverage of the agency’s $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory mission landing will be broadcast live on the Toshiba Vision screen that hangs below the iconic New Year’s Eve ball in Times Square, space agency officials say. The broadcast begins at 10:30 p.m.  Sunday night and runs until 3 a.m.  Monday morning. The exact time of landing is scheduled for 12:31 a.m. Monday. Curiosity is designed to spend two years exploring the vast Gale Crater in pursuit of some of Mars’ biggest mysteries, including the question of whether water – or life – ever existed there. The rover launched in November 2011 and is now poised to land in a difficult maneuver this weekend involving a hovering rocket-powered “ Sky Crane “ that will lower the vehicle to Mars’ surface via tethers. NASA centers around the country, including NASA Headquarters in Washington, will be open for landing events. Many science centers also are opening for events focused on the Curiosity landing. To find events near you, visit http://go.nasa.gov/QtmuY7.