On Monday 19th August 2024, the millionth laser shot on Mars by ChemCam, one of the instruments on NASA’s Curiosity rover, was planned by French teams at CNES.

Two days later, on Wednesday August 21, at around 8.20 pm French time, the millionth ChemCam shot was fired at Mars. This was Sol 4281, the 4281st Martian day of the mission. The data were received on Thursday August 22nd for analysis by the American team.

The target of this millionth shot: a fragment of rock, named Royce Lakes, which was broken by the rover itself when it rolled over it. The whitish interior of the rock, contrasting with the orange-red appearance of the Martian surface, immediately caught the eye of the scientists.

Other recent observations were decisive in the choice of this target: sulfur crystals were discovered in a valley on Mount Sharp, which the rover is currently climbing. Scientists are wondering whether this rock will have the same properties…

As usual, several measurement points were made on this target, 5 in all. And on each point, several shots: 30 in all. Each shot provides new information and enriches the Martian composition database. This millionth shot represented the 11th shot on the 4th point.

ChemCam’s mission is to measure the chemical composition and image the rocks and soil on the surface of Mars.

The French hardware contribution to ChemCam was built on a partnership between CNES, CNRS-INSU, several universities (Toulouse, Bordeaux, Paris, Lorraine, Lyon) and CEA. ChemCam is under the joint scientific responsibility of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico (USA), and the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie (IRAP, France) of the Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées in Toulouse. CNES plays a major role in its operational and technical operation, in conjunction with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL, USA) and research laboratories on both sides of the Atlantic.

Read the full news release that includes additional images, and the spectra measured on this target on this link: https://cnes.fr/en/news/1-million-shots-chemcam-mars

Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/CNES/LANL/IRAP/LPGN/IAS/CNRS/MSSS