As I came out of the number 1 subway station in Lower Manhattan on Wednesday evening I encountered a scene that was different to what I was used to. https://s21.postimg.org/wx1ednmt3/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___1.jpg Instinct had me enter, but I couldn't stay long because I was already late for an evening lecture at the genome center right across the street. So I rushed asking for details and deciding I was going to come back another day. Turns out that between October 26 - 29, National Geographic hosted a free, public expo called 'Experience Mars: IMSF Recruitment Center' at Varick Street & Canal Street in New York. One of their purposes was to bring awareness on the upcoming (November) global series about colonizing the red planet. As per one of [their instagram posts](https://www.instagram.com/p/BMHKW2_jDi2/?taken-by=natgeo): _"Experience for yourself first hand like I did yesterday, the first-ever commercial use of a cable robot virtual reality simulator, simulating what it would be like to land on Mars._ _Try an authentic Fusion VR Martian surface walk in 38 percent gravity via the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill, where the world’s first and only treadmill using NASA based anti-gravity technology meets the most detailed and accurate Mars VR experience developed with real orbital and rover mission data._ _Race to complete seemingly simple tasks against the jarring resistance of working and building a human outpost on the Martian surface."_ And so I returned on Friday afternoon. https://s21.postimg.org/o3ahwjzuf/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___2.jpg This is Curiosity, the rover which is on the surface of Mars, still exploring after successfully completing its mission in 2014: https://s21.postimg.org/kxuhk36lz/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___3.jpg https://s21.postimg.org/r024akv1z/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___4.jpg Here is Spirit & Opportunity (not the best view, though): https://s21.postimg.org/bsm4q837b/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___5.jpg And Sojourner, which is currently inactive; it landed on Mars in 1997 and traveled circa 100m (330 feet) in ~5 months: https://s21.postimg.org/fdi09g7qv/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___6.jpg The treadmills to simulate Mars gravity conditions. The VR headset enhances the experience: https://s21.postimg.org/66zpm62if/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___7.jpg Other related 'things' to try out: https://s21.postimg.org/6xsfry4vr/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___8.jpg The space suits are for expo purposes only. They look and feel (from the exterior) kindof comfy. They say you'd somehow 'walk' into them, making the entire suit-up process fast and 'convenient': https://s21.postimg.org/xwwan3rcn/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___9.jpg I think we'll meet this crew in the upcoming series: https://s21.postimg.org/j27p8xhrr/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___10.jpg They gave away the November issue of National Geographic titled 'Race to the Red Planet', which contains, among others, a big map with a plan to colonize mars. They also offered us free cardboard VR goggles which we can use to play in VR [here](http://www.makemarshome.com/recruitment/dossier)(and not only). https://s21.postimg.org/5zc2pnrjr/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___11.jpg I only played for 1-2 minutes on site, but I'm really excited to experiment with these goggles once I can spare some free time. L.E.: _I got to play with the goggles for an hour last night. I am humbled. VR, in my view, will change the world. I can only guess the amazing experience you'd have with more advanced VR sets, given the awesome experience I can have with these cardboard ones on my phone. Exploring remote places in VR is awesome._ You can play the simulation without the goggles if you select ['standard mode'](http://www.makemarshome.com/recruitment/assessments/spaceflight). To get a feeling of this, video search for 'best cardboard vr apps'. You can get cardboard VR goggles for ~$10. And here's the map with the colonization plan. Notice how big it is, as I compare it with a pack of gum. https://s21.postimg.org/fxx1c50zb/I_met_Curiosity,_the_Mars_Rover___12.jpg Last but not least, the premiere of the series is November the 14th, but it seems that you can watch the first episode [now](http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/mars/). Enjoy! ___ This was initially posted on my [personal blog](http://cristivlad.com/my-encounter-with-curiosity-the-mars-rover/). ___ ### To stay in touch with me, follow @cristi #space #science #mars ___ [Cristi Vlad](http://cristivlad.com), Self-Experimenter and Author