Video: Mars landing risky but not crazy If the Mars Science Laboratory, a wheeled rover nicknamed Curiosity, touches down safely - which is by no means a given - scientists expect to have two years to collect information about Mount Sharp and the surrounding area. Is it crazy? Well, not so much. Once you get comfortable, once you understand it, it's not a crazy concept. It works. Is it risky? Landing on Mars is always risky. There are hundreds of discreet events that occur from release of the cruise stage to parachute deployments to heat shield deployments. All of these are unique and any one could cause problems. Mars throws things at you. Dust storms, atmospheric density changes, wind. So it's a very unique and a very challenging environment," he said. Rather than hunt for microbes like the Viking missions of the 1970s, Nasa's Mars Science Laboratory will look for places that could have hosted and preserved life. The rover blasted off aboard an unmanned Atlas 5 rocket on Nov 26 for a nine-month, 60-million mile voyage. On August 6, if all goes well it will arrive on Mars.