Glenelg, Mars

Glenelg, Mars (or Glenelg Intrigue) is a location on Mars near the Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity rover) landing site ("Bradbury Landing") in Gale Crater marked by a natural intersection of three kinds of terrain.

The location was named Glenelg by NASA scientists for two reasons: all features in the immediate vicinity were given names associated with Yellowknife in northern Canada, and Glenelg is the name of a geological feature there. Furthermore, the name is a palindrome, and as the Curiosity rover is planned to visit the location twice (once coming, and once going) this was an appealing feature for the name. The original Glenelg is a village in Scotland which on 20 October 2012 had a ceremony, including a live link to NASA, to celebrate their "twinning" with Glenelg on Mars.

The trek to Glenelg will send the rover 400 m (1,300 ft) east-southeast of its landing site. One of the three types of terrain intersecting at Glenelg is layered bedrock, which is attractive as the first drilling target.

First-Year & First-Mile Traverse Map of the Curiosity rover on Mars (August 1, 2013) (3-D).

Curiosity's view of the Glenelg Area – where three terrains merge (September 19, 2012).

"Burwash" rock on Mars - as viewed by the MAHLI camera on the Curiosity rover (October 29, 2012).

"Et-Then" rock on Mars - as viewed by the MAHLI camera on the Curiosity rover (October 29, 2012).

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