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NASA’s Curiosity rover uses its Powder Acquisition Drill System (PADS) to make a small hole in Martian rock and produce powder from material below the weathered surface. The drill combines rotation with percussion, then an auger carries the powder up the bit into temporary chambers. Curiosity transfers that material to its Collection and Handling for In-Situ Martian Rock Analysis device (CHIMRA), which sieves and portions it for the SAM and CheMin laboratories inside the rover.
The drill is therefore both a cutting tool and the first part of a sample-delivery system. It does not simply leave a pile of dust on Mars: the arm, drill, bit assembly, vibration, CHIMRA mechanisms and internal instruments work as one chain.
What Curiosity’s drill is designed to do
PADS is mounted on the turret at the end of Curiosity’s robotic arm. NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory launch press kit describes it as a rotary-percussive drill: the bit turns while a percussion mechanism repeatedly drives it against the rock. Rotation cuts and grinds; percussion helps fracture hard material and advance the bit.
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Powder is the intended product. Fine particles can be moved through the rover’s sample-handling hardware and divided into portions small enough for the instruments. Curiosity’s drill is not described as a coring system that returns a cylindrical core intact; its normal operation grinds rock into a powder feedstock.
How a drilled sample travels through Curiosity
1. The arm positions the turret and bit
Curiosity first places the robotic-arm turret against a selected rock surface. The turret carries several contact tools, including PADS. The arm must hold the bit in the correct position and apply force without making the rover lose stability or damaging the target.
The hole is deliberately small compared with the rover. NASA’s stated approximately 1.6-centimeter diameter allows the system to collect interior material while limiting the amount of rock and energy required for each operation.
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When drilling begins, the bit rotates and strikes the rock with repeated percussion. The combined action penetrates the surface and breaks particles loose. Because the powder comes from below the exposed exterior, it can reveal material that has not been as heavily altered by dust, radiation or surface weathering.
The maximum 5-centimeter sampling depth comes from NASA/JPL’s 2011 press kit. Actual drilling depth depends on the target, the rover’s operating plan and the condition of the mechanism, so that figure should be read as the system’s specified capability rather than a depth reached on every hole.
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3. An auger carries powder up the bit
Flutes or an auger on the drill bit convey the newly made powder upward. NASA describes the material as traveling up the bit and being held in chambers inside the drill-bit assembly. The chambers provide temporary storage until Curiosity is ready to move the sample onward.
This internal path is why the drill can collect material instead of merely ejecting it around the hole. The powder remains associated with the bit assembly while the arm and turret prepare for the transfer operation.
4. Vibration and rover motion help empty the bit
Moving powder out of the bit is an active operation. In NASA’s 2013 explanation, lead drill hardware engineer Avi Okon said that the team uses wrist and turret movements, together with vibration from the drill’s percussion mechanism, to move material from the bit assembly into CHIMRA. His description captures the sequence: “As we drill the hole, the powder gets conveyed up this tube and gets stored in the chamber inside the drill bit assembly.”
That means percussion has a second job after rock breaking. Its vibration can help loosen and transport powder during sample delivery. The arm’s controlled movements position the stored material over the receiving hardware rather than requiring a separate conveyor across the rover.
5. CHIMRA receives and prepares the material
CHIMRA stands for Collection and Handling for In-Situ Martian Rock Analysis. NASA’s sample-preparation explanation says CHIMRA can receive drilled material through a sample-transfer tube. It can also receive loose soil collected by Curiosity’s scoop, so the same preparation system supports two different starting materials.
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Inside CHIMRA, the sample passes through a sieve with openings of 150 micrometers, according to NASA’s 2013 description. Sieving separates particles by size so the rover can deliver a controlled fraction to its analytical instruments. CHIMRA’s portion box then routes prepared portions onward.
6. The portion box feeds SAM and CheMin
The portion box supplies the rover’s two internal sample-analysis instruments:
- SAM (Sample Analysis at Mars): receives a prepared portion for onboard laboratory analysis.
- CheMin (Chemistry and Mineralogy): receives a prepared portion for mineral and chemical investigation.
Both instruments are inside Curiosity’s body. The drill therefore forms only the first stage of a longer chain: rock contact, grinding, auger transport, temporary storage, transfer, sieving, portioning and laboratory analysis.
Key drill and sample-handling specifications
| Item | What NASA specifies or reports | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Drill type | Rotary-percussive Powder Acquisition Drill System | NASA/JPL Mars Science Laboratory launch press kit, 2011 |
| Maximum sampling depth | 5 cm (2 in) below a rock’s surface | Design capability stated in the 2011 press kit; not the depth of every hole |
| Approximate hole diameter | 1.6 cm (0.63 in) | 2011 press-kit specification |
| Sample transport | Auger or flutes carry powder upward into chambers in the bit assembly | NASA descriptions from 2011 and 2013 |
| CHIMRA sieve | 150 micrometers | NASA sample-preparation resource, 2013 |
| Receiving laboratories | SAM and CheMin | Prepared portions are delivered inside the rover |
How drilling differs from Curiosity’s scoop
Curiosity has two sample routes that meet at CHIMRA but begin with different materials.
| Route | Starting material | Entry into the handling system | Common preparation stage |
|---|---|---|---|
| PADS drill | Consolidated rock below the exposed surface | Drill bit assembly and sample-transfer tube | CHIMRA sieving and portioning |
| Robotic-arm scoop | Loose soil or unconsolidated surface material | Scoop delivery into CHIMRA | CHIMRA sieving and portioning |
The shared CHIMRA hardware does not make the two samples equivalent. A drilled powder represents a selected point inside bedrock; scooped material represents loose surface sediment. Scientists choose the route according to the geological question and the target available to the rover.
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Engineering changes that helped Curiosity keep drilling
Feed-extended drilling
NASA’s 2017 account describes a historical workaround called “feed extended drilling.” It was developed after a period when the drill’s normal feed mechanism was unavailable. In this method, the bit was extended past its stabilizers, and the robotic arm moved the bit onto and into the rock. A force sensor in the arm helped Curiosity adjust its motion while drilling.
NASA described a shallow test hole first, with deeper drilling and sample delivery planned afterward. This account documents an engineering adaptation at that time; it does not establish Curiosity’s exact drilling method or mechanical status in October 2026.
Spare-bit protection
The 2011 mission press kit also describes two spare drill bits carried in bit boxes. If a bit became stuck, the rover was designed to disengage from it and capture a spare. That is a planned capability, not confirmation that a particular spare is currently available or has been used.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the 2024 drill-hole tally means
NASA’s “Curiosity’s 42 Drill Holes” image description, published August 27, 2024, counted 42 powdered-rock samples. It described the holes as each a little over 16 millimeters wide, consistent with the approximately 1.6-centimeter diameter in the earlier press kit.
Forty-two is a dated historical tally, not Curiosity’s current total in 2026. The available figure also does not state how much powder came from each hole, how deep each hole was, or whether every hole supplied both internal instruments. Those details should not be inferred from the count alone.
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Why the powder must be prepared before analysis
Raw drilling debris is a mixture of particle sizes and may include fragments that are too large or unevenly distributed for a controlled instrument delivery. CHIMRA’s sieve provides a defined particle-size cutoff, while its portion box lets the rover send measured portions to the laboratories.
Preparation also lets one sample support more than one investigation. Instead of placing the entire bit load into a single instrument, Curiosity can route portions to SAM and CheMin. The rover’s internal laboratory design is consequently dependent on the mechanical handling steps outside the instrument compartments.
Common misconceptions about Curiosity’s drill
“It only scratches the surface.”
No. PADS is intended to penetrate rock and collect powder from below the exposed surface, with NASA specifying a maximum sampling depth of 5 centimeters.
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“The auger sends powder directly into SAM or CheMin.”
No. The auger carries powder into chambers in the drill-bit assembly first. CHIMRA receives the material, sieves it and uses a portion box to route prepared portions to SAM and CheMin.
“Every hole is automatically a complete laboratory sample.”
Not necessarily. A hole is the drilling operation; successful transfer, sieving and portioning are additional stages. NASA’s published descriptions explain the designed route but do not provide a per-hole accounting of instrument deliveries.
“The 42-hole number is Curiosity’s current total.”
No. NASA dated that tally to August 27, 2024. A current 2026 total requires a newer mission update.
In one sentence
Curiosity’s arm-mounted PADS drill uses rotary-percussive grinding to make rock powder, an auger and bit chambers to collect it, vibration and arm motion to transfer it, and CHIMRA’s sieve and portion box to prepare it for the SAM and CheMin instruments.
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