NASA will push back the launch of a next-generation rover to Mars until 2011 because of testing and hardware challenges.

"We will not lessen our standards for testing the mission's complex flight systems, so we are choosing the more responsible option of changing the launch date," said Doug McCuistion, director of the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington, in a statement.

Officials with the Mars Science Laboratory say the voyage was initially scheduled for October 2009, but had been postponed two more years to conduct more tests.

The mission will focus on a Mars location where experts believe wet conditions may have existed.  The rover will check for data to determine whether the planet could support life.

By Brett Molina