08/30/12 jgm

HAYS, Kan. -- "Curious about Curiosity" a presentation by Dr. John Heinrichs, chair of the Department of Geosciences, on the Mars rover, will kick off Fort Hays State University's fall Science Café series at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 6, in the backroom of Gella's Diner, 117 E. 11th St.

"I will be covering the key questions about Mars," said Heinrichs. "After the inconclusive results from Viking Mission in the 1970s, questions have been circling about whether Mars has ever or can it ever sustain life. I want to discuss these questions and those about the current mission."

The Mars Science Laboratory Mission carried by Curiosity landed on Mars on Aug. 5. The rover, about the size of a small SUV, is traveling around the Gale Crater for a planned mission of two years to determine if Mars' climate ever was, or still is today, habitable for microbial life.

The event is free and open to the public and is sponsored by the FHSU Science and Mathematics Education Institute.