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In pictures: NASA's Curiosity Rover is still searching for life on Mars a decade on

The Curiosity Rover marked one decade on the Red Planet this month. (NASA)

It's been 10 years since NASA's Curiosity Rover landed on the Red Planet to search for evidence that billions of years ago, Mars had the conditions to support life. 

Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral in November 2011 as part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, and successfully landed on Mars on August 6, 2012.

In that time, the rover has driven about 29 kilometres and climbed 625 metres on the surface of the red planet.  

The rover has drilled as many as 35 samples from the planet's surface to detect evidence of conditions favourable for life. In total it has analysed 41 rocks and soil samples.

While the rover has helped scientists to discover that Mars could have supported ancient life on the planet, its mission was recently extended a further three years to continue to help scientists learn more about the planet's past habitable environment.

Curiosity took this image of Mount Sharp in January 2018.  (Supplied: NASA)

The rover is fitted with 17 cameras, which have provided the eyes for scientists to help guide the craft and analyse the planet.

And those cameras have taken some striking images along the way.

This image of sedimentary rocks on Vera Rubin Ridge was created using 70 images taken from the Mastcam's right eye. (Supplied: NASA)
Combining 112 images taken from the Mastcam of the rover, this picture captures the rippled linear dune of dark Martian sand in 2017.  (Supplied: NASA)
In 2016 Curiosity took this image of buttes and mesas rising above the surface on lower Mount Sharp.  (Supplied: NASA)
This image of the Gale Crater on Mars, showing deposited sediment and an ancient lake bed, was taken in 2017.
This image of a Martian rock slab named "Old Soaker" was taken in December 2016. Its cracks possibly originated in drying mud.  (NASA)
A hole and rock powder drilled by the Curiosity Rover on Mars. (NASA)
The Curiosity rover snapped a selfie while taking a panoramic image in 2018. (AP: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)
The Mars Hand Lens Images on the rover took this image of a mineral vein in Martian rock in 2018. (Supplied: NASA)
In March 2021, the rover captured images of "shining" clouds over Mars. (Supplied: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)

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