"Curiosity Rover Explores Striped Terrain on Mars"

NASA's Curiosity rover is currently exploring an ancient ridge on the side of Mount Sharp on Mars, known as Gediz Vallis Ridge, which preserves a record of past water flow on the planet. The rover is investigating the alternating dark and light bands of material, which are believed to be the desiccated remains of ancient flooding. Scientists are interested in understanding the formation of these terrains and whether they were created by similar processes to those on Earth. The rover's mission aims to uncover clues about the sequence of events that led to the formation of the ridge and to study the mineral compositions of the rocks to determine their exposure to water over time.