How NASA Drives The Mars Curiosity Rover: With Special Software

What is it like to drive on Mars? Every movement on the rough terrain risks damage to the wheels on NASA's Curiosity rover, which would be stranded on the alien planet, a trip of several months away from any Earth help, should anything go seriously wrong. To avoid a terminal error, NASA has developed a new algorithm for driving its rover that changes the wheels' speed based on what rocks are beneath them. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory said the software was uploaded onto the rover earlier this year, following months of testing on the ground, and the space agency started using it in June. It's geared toward traction control -- stopping the six wheels from spinning at different speeds when one or more of them climbs over a rock.