Curiosity Discovers New Mineral Texture on Mars, Prepares for First Drill Above Erosional Surface

During Sols 5016–5021, Curiosity captured a close‑up of a brushed spot on bedrock, informally named “Salar de Vacas,” revealing a jumble of disc‑shaped lumps 3–4 mm across and about 1 mm thick. The rover’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) produced a composite image that brought the features into focus. The team noted a sudden change from finely layered bedrock to blocks covered with these small discs, a texture also seen in earlier mission sites such as the Pahrump Hills. Planned follow‑up imaging with Mastcam, LIBS, and APXS will probe the morphology and composition of the lumps. Curiosity has driven over a kilometer since its last drill at Campo Marte and will conduct its first drill above the erosional supersurface, a key step toward identifying minerals with the CheMin X‑ray diffraction instrument. The short drive to a new drill target will enable contact science and a preload test before the drill itself.