Space.com #4 Years on Mars! NASA’s Historic Curiosity Rover Marks Anniversary 5 August 2016 fborgosano Leave a comment Share: On the night of Aug. 5, 2012, a rocket-powered “sky crane” lowered the car-size Curiosity onto Mars’ red dirt using cables — a technique that had never been employed on the surface of another world before. from Space.com ift.tt/2ancr73 Share: