July 10, 2009--At almost 15 feet (4.5 meters) wide, the heat shield built for the newest Mars rover Curiosity (previously called the Mars Science Laboratory) is the largest shield yet built for a spacecraft bound for the surface of another planet.

The shield will help protect the SUV-size rover from intense heat and friction as the craft speeds through the Martian atmosphere to land at a still undecided location. Curiosity is scheduled for launch in the fall of 2011.