Mission to Mars

Horizon goes behind the scenes at NASA as they countdown to the landing of a 2.5 billion-dollar rover on the surface of Mars. In six days time, the nuclear-powered vehicle - the size of a car - will be winched down onto the surface of the Red Planet from a rocket-powered crane. That's if things go according to plan: Mars has become known as the Bermuda Triangle of space because so many missions there have ended in failure. The Curiosity mission is the most audacious - and expensive - attempt to answer the question: is there life on Mars?

Other episodes for this season

The Truth About Looking Young
Episode 1 - The Truth About Looking Y...
Mission to Mars
Episode 2 - Mission to Mars
Eat, Fast and Live Longer
Episode 3 - Eat, Fast and Live Longer
How Big Is the Universe?
Episode 4 - How Big Is the Universe?
How Small Is the Universe?
Episode 5 - How Small Is the Universe...
Defeating the Superbugs
Episode 6 - Defeating the Superbugs
The Creative Brain: How Insight Works
Episode 7 - The Creative Brain: How I...
How to Avoid Mistakes in Surgery
Episode 8 - How to Avoid Mistakes in...
The Truth about Taste
Episode 9 - The Truth about Taste
The Age of Big Data
Episode 10 - The Age of Big Data
The Secret Life of the Cat
Episode 11 - The Secret Life of the Ca...
Little Cat Diaries
Episode 12 - Little Cat Diaries
Fracking: The New Energy Rush
Episode 13 - Fracking: The New Energy...
Swallowed by a Black Hole
Episode 14 - Swallowed by a Black Hole
What Makes us Human?
Episode 15 - What Makes us Human?
The Truth About Personality
Episode 16 - The Truth About Personali...