NASA to Discuss Latest Mars Rover Findings Friday
![Curiosity Rover Searching](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Z7aGVFdY3h5n4sKscCNaki.jpg)
NASA will hold a press conference Friday (Nov. 2) to discuss the latest discoveries from the Mars rover Curiosity.
The press conference, which begins at 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT), will "provide an update on Curiosity's studies of the Martian atmosphere," according to a NASA media advisory. That may mean researchers have their first atmospheric results from the rover's Sample Analysis at Mars instrument, or SAM.
SAM can identify organic compounds, the carbon-containing building blocks of life. While SAM has yet to analyze its first soil sample, Curiosity has already sniffed the Red Planet's air several times in a search for methane, a gas commonly produced by organisms here on Earth.
NASA will stream audio and visuals of the news conference live; you can follow along here.
The 1-ton Curiosity rover landed inside Mars' huge Gale Crater on Aug. 5, kicking off a two-year mission to determine if the Red Planet could ever have supported microbial life. The robot is currently investigating a sandy area called "Rocknest," where it has been trying out its scooping and soil-sampling gear for the first time.
Follow SPACE.com on Twitter @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
Get the Space.com Newsletter
Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!
Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.
Space.com is the premier source of space exploration, innovation and astronomy news, chronicling (and celebrating) humanity's ongoing expansion across the final frontier. Originally founded in 1999, Space.com is, and always has been, the passion of writers and editors who are space fans and also trained journalists. Our current news team consists of Editor-in-Chief Tariq Malik; Editor Hanneke Weitering, Senior Space Writer Mike Wall; Senior Writer Meghan Bartels; Senior Writer Chelsea Gohd, Senior Writer Tereza Pultarova and Staff Writer Alexander Cox, focusing on e-commerce. Senior Producer Steve Spaleta oversees our space videos, with Diana Whitcroft as our Social Media Editor.