NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity took a close-up photo of one of its cracked wheels on July 23, 2026. The image came from MAHLI on Sol 4963 and shows wear on a rover that has spent nearly 14 years on Mars.
The wheel photo was taken after Curiosity had traveled over 20 miles, or 32 kilometers, across the Martian surface. NASA and JPL periodically use the rover’s cameras to check the wheels, and this new view adds a fresh look at damage already documented in earlier inspections.
Curiosity and MAHLI on Sol 4963
Curiosity landed in Mars’ Gale Crater on Aug. 5, 2012, and the rover now weighs over one ton. On July 23, 2026, MAHLI captured the close-up of the wheel during Sol 4963, giving engineers another data point on how the rover’s hardware is holding up after years of rocky travel.
The image also shows why the wheel checks remain part of routine operations. As Curiosity keeps moving across uneven ground, the wheels take repeated stress from sharp rock and rough terrain, so each close-up helps compare current wear with what NASA has seen before.
NASA’s 2024 wheel assessment
The new image sits against a 2024 statement from NASA that said the wheels were holding up well despite taking some of the worst abuse from Mars. That earlier assessment and the latest close-up can both be true: the rover has continued operating, but the hardware now shows visible holes and cracks.
For Curiosity, the practical issue is not the photo itself. It is the continuing balance between movement across Gale Crater and the gradual loss of material in the wheels. NASA and JPL will keep checking them with the rover’s cameras, which is the main way the team tracks whether the damage stays manageable.
Mars rover wear going forward
The picture does not answer how much additional mission life Curiosity has left with its damaged wheels. It does show that the rover is still working after nearly 14 years, and that its wheel inspections remain a basic part of keeping a heavy machine moving on Mars.
