In-situ instrumentation enables the collection of Mars data from the surface. Below are examples of the way in which the Mars Science Laboratory mission benefits from past technological development and contributes new capabilities.

Inherited Technologies and New Capabilities
of Mars Science Laboratory's In-situ Instrumentation

Mars Science Laboratory will truly be a chemistry laboratory on wheels. Going beyond just having a very powerful "fistful" of instruments as Spirit and Opportunity do, Mars Science Laboratory will also take samples onboard and analyze them. Some instruments on Mars Science Laboratory inherited a good deal of technology from their predecessors on the Mars Exploration Rovers, but they are, indeed, "next generation" in terms of capability.