Another Mars Rover, Another Chance for (Materialist) Redemption

NASA is getting ready to land a new rover on Mars, this one to explore Gale Crater, one of the lowest elevation points on the planet and where water might have been expected to gather at some time in the past. The landing date is August 6 but there's some drama likely to unfold for minutes or hours after as the space agency will lose its view of the rover during its perilous descent.

Good luck and best wishes to the plucky vehicle, which goes by the nickname Curiosity. Watch the genuinely ex...