(Image: Stephen Pakbaz)
NASA鈥檚 Mars Curiosity rover may already have discovered the first definitive evidence that the Red Planet was once suited to life 鈥� but only now has the interplanetary monster truck gained the space fan鈥檚 ultimate credential: immortalisation in Lego.
It鈥檚 the latest in a long line of Lego space kits, but this one is special because it was demanded by thousands and designed by an engineer who worked on the real Curiosity.
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鈥淚 combined this first-hand experience with my Lego hobby to create a Lego model that was as faithful to the actual rover as possible in terms of accuracy, details and mechanical function,鈥� says designer Stephen Pakbaz, a mechanical engineer who worked on Curiosity at NASA鈥檚 Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The model has a working suspension system, an articulated arm and a poseable mast for recreating your favourite events in Curiosity鈥檚 ongoing mission.
The Curiosity toy is the fifth design to be approved for release via , which lets enthusiasts submit their own designs to the Danish-based toy company for others to vote on. Any model winning 10,000 votes is considered for release. A Lego version of the Japanese Hayabusa asteroid sampler also started life on Cuusoo and .
Pakbaz has for a Lego version of the Sky Crane daringly employed by NASA to lower Curiosity to the surface of Mars.
See more notable space probe toys in our gallery: 鈥�Mars R Us: Six toys all space fans must have鈥�
Toy Mars rovers have a storied history, going back to Mattel鈥檚 , released in 1996. In 2001, the toy company produced a 鈥淩eturn to Mars鈥� set which included the Mars Polar Lander, the Mars Climate Orbiter and the Deep Space Two probes 鈥� all of which failed.
鈥淚t went from the 鈥楻eturn to Mars Set鈥� to the 鈥楳ars Crash Set,'鈥� says Robert Pearlman of , a resource for space history enthusiasts. 鈥淚t taught Mattel a lesson about trying to release something before there was a success.鈥� The company waited until after Curiosity safely landed on 6 August last year before .
Lego, on the other hand, took a risk on the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission, composed of the twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity, and released in advance of the rovers鈥� landings in 2004. Those models are now popular collectors鈥� items. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e lucky if you can find one in a box for less than a few hundred dollars,鈥� says Pearlman.
Even those who work every day on the real Curiosity are excited to pick up the new toy. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 fantastic that Lego is taking on a Curiosity design,鈥� says of Caltech, the rover鈥檚 principal scientist. 鈥淚 enjoyed putting the MER model together with my older daughter and now I鈥檒l get to do the same with my younger daughter.鈥�
