Mars rover to meet mountain

Ten months after landing on Mars, the Nasa rover Curiosity is finally about to pack up and head towards a mountain.

Discoveries and longer-than-expected scientific studies have delayed the long-awaited drive to Mount Sharp, where scientists are anxious to examine the rock layers.

Mission scientists said this week the six-wheeled rover should start the trek to the mountain in "a few weeks", after making three quick observations of nearby rocks. The 8km journey is expected to take 10 months to a year with stops on the way.

Since touching down near the Martian equator last year, Curiosity has discovered an ancient stream bed and found evidence of a habitable environment long ago. It has yet to turn up signs of complex organic molecules that are fundamental to all living things.