24/7 LiveSan FranciscoEast BaySouth BayPeninsulaNorth Bay

Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself

KTRK logo
Saturday, August 5, 2017
Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself

HOUSTON -- Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On August 5, 2012, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars. Many celebrate this on August 6 because when it landed at 10:32 p.m. PT, most of the world was a day ahead. However, NASA celebrates on August 5.

In the past five years, it has made some great discoveries.

On the anniversary of its landing, Curiosity is programmed to sing the "Happy Birthday" tune.

Perhaps someday, someone on Mars will finally hear it.

Copyright © 2026 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Live Streams
ON NOW
\n\n","url":"https://twitter.com/x/statuses/893835767822372864","oembed":"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"}]},"hideDate":false,"hideReportTypo":true}]},"dateline":"HOUSTON --","layout":{},"origin":{"source":"KTRK","name":"KTRK","logo":"https://cdn.abcotvs.net/abcotv/static/common/origins/origin-ktrk.png","link":"https://abc7news.com/2278500/"},"brand":{"name":""},"badges":null,"tags":[{"tag":"nasa","name":"nasa","path":"tag/Other/nasa","type":"general"},{"tag":"mars","name":"mars","path":"tag/Other/mars","type":"general"},{"tag":"birthday","name":"birthday","path":"tag/Other/birthday","type":"general"},{"tag":"houston","name":"Houston","path":"places/kgo/United States/Texas/Houston","type":"location"}],"articleType":"post","exclusive":false,"sponsoredStory":false,"developing":false,"breaking":false,"trending":false,"latest":false,"isLive":false,"amp":true,"hideReportTypo":true,"hideAds":false,"featuredMedia":{"featuredMedia":{"m3u8":"","isLive":false,"isClone":false,"img":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg","src":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg","shieldUrl":"https://watch.auth.api.espn.com/video/auth/media/2278517/asset?context=news_kgo&aspectRatio=16x9","station":"KTRK","section":"kgo","id":"2278517","cmsTitle":"Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself","title":"Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself","caption":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","desc":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","date":1501959443,"callout":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","type":"video","viewType":"hidden","firstPublished":1501959443,"firstPub":"2017-08-05 18:57:23 +00:00","dateModified":"2017-10-25 03:32:01 +00:00","tracking":{"comscore":{},"heartbeats":{},"nielsen":{}},"tags":"nasa,mars,birthday,linear-video,None","topic":"science","placement":"Feature","trackingName":"kgo","location":"houston","keywords":"","cmsVideoType":"","seasonNumber":"","showTitle":"","episodeNumber":"","webHref":"https://abc7news.com/videoClip/2278517/","shareUrl":"https://abc7news.com/videoClip/2278517/","embedUrl":"https://abc7news.com/video/embed?pid=2278517","contentType":"shortform","appVersion":"prod-fe5f541ac445-release-05-27-2026.12","aspectRatio":"16x9","externalId":"080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid_web","source":{"url":"","type":"none"},"images":[{"url":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg?w=1024"}],"metaCaption":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","duration":133,"imageCredit":"KTRK","imageCaption":false,"authenticationTypes":[],"cues":[],"description":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","entityType":"shortform","genre":"science","isSyndicatable":false,"isLinear":false,"language":"en","originating_station":"KTRK","references":{},"streamType":"onDemand","ambient":false,"leadImageCredit":"KTRK","originalImg":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg"},"img":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg?w=992","imageOverride":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg"},"featuredMediaType":"video","inlineJsNeeded":{"chimney":false,"scrbbl":false,"vine":false},"isDistro":true,"translatedPost":{}},"allowAmp":true,"isReadMoreTest":false},"ads":{"network":21783347309,"base":"kabc","kvps":[{"name":"aff","value":"kgo"},{"name":"chan","value":"kgo"},{"name":"lang","value":"en"},{"name":"pgn","value":"2278500"},{"name":"pgtyp","value":"article"},{"name":"objid","value":"2278500"},{"name":"tag","value":"nasa,mars,birthday,houston"}],"selector":".ad-slot","sizes":{"leaderboard1":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[970,90],[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard2":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[970,90],[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard1home":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard2home":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard3home":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard4home":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"leaderboard5home":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"thinbanner":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"thinbanner2":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[728,90]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"sponsoredByLogo":{"defaultSize":[88,31],"mappings":[{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[320,51]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[88,31]}]},"sponsoredByLogoEvent":{"defaultSize":[88,32],"mappings":[{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[320,52]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[88,32]}]},"sponsoredByLogoModule":{"defaultSize":[88,33],"mappings":[{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[320,53]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[88,33]}]},"rectangle":{"defaultSize":[300,250],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[300,250]}]},"halfpage":{"defaultSize":[300,250],"mappings":[{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[[300,600],[300,250]]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[300,250]}]},"incontent1":{"defaultSize":[300,250],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[300,250]}]},"incontent2":{"defaultSize":[300,250],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[300,250]}]},"incontent3":{"defaultSize":[300,250],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[300,250]}]},"native":{"defaultSize":[1,1],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[1,1]}]},"interstitial":{"defaultSize":[1,1],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[1,1]}]},"fitt-article-right-rail":{"defaultSize":[[300,250],[300,600]],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1024,0],"slot":[[300,250],[300,600]]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[]}]},"fitt-article-top-banner":{"defaultSize":[[970,250],[970,66],[728,90]],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1024,0],"slot":[[970,250],[970,66],[728,90]]},{"viewport":[768,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[300,0],"slot":[[320,50]]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[]}]},"fitt-article-inline-outstream":{"defaultSize":[[1,3],[300,250]],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1280,0],"slot":[[1,3],[300,250]]},{"viewport":[1024,0],"slot":[[1,3],[300,250]]},{"viewport":[768,0],"slot":[[1,3],[300,250]]},{"viewport":[300,0],"slot":[[1,3],[300,250]]}]},"fitt-article-inline-box":{"defaultSize":[[300,250]],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[[300,250]]}]},"prestitial":{"defaultSize":[1,1],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[1,1]}]},"overpage":{"defaultSize":[1,1],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[1,1]}]},"adhesion":{"defaultSize":[728,90],"mappings":[{"viewport":[1030,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[748,0],"slot":[[728,90]]},{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[320,50]}]},"follow_ad":{"defaultSize":[2,2],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[2,2]}]},"folding_ad":{"defaultSize":[2,2],"mappings":[{"viewport":[0,0],"slot":[2,2]}]}},"breakpoints":{"l":[1030],"m":[748,1029],"s":[0,747]},"supportDynamicPageLoad":true,"delayInPageAdSlots":true,"disableInitialLoad":true,"refreshOnBreakpointChange":true,"dynamicKeyValues":{"profile":{"key":"prof"}},"id":12129264,"disabled":"false","incontentPositions":{"defaults":{"favorites":-1,"now":4,"news":4},"index":{"top":{"favorites":-1},"nfl":{}}},"load":{"defaults":{"desktop":"init","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"init"},"frontpage":{"desktop":"init","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"init"},"story":{"desktop":"window.load","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"window.load"},"index":{"desktop":"window.load","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"window.load"},"scoreboard":{"desktop":"window.load","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"window.load"},"standings":{"desktop":"window.load","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"window.load"},"schedule":{"desktop":"window.load","mobile":"window.load","tablet":"window.load"}},"preBidConfig":{"usePreBid":true,"usePreBidRefresh":true},"level":"kgo/abc7news.com/web/science"},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgotvkgoresponsive","ns":"abcotv","pageName":"science/post_video/mars-rover-sings-happy-birthday-to-itself=2278500","station":"kgo","stationName":"ABC7 San Francisco","pageType":"prism-story","liveTitle":"ABC7 Eyewitness News","dateModified":1501959467,"firstPublished":1501959466,"canonical":"https://abc7news.com/post/mars-rover-sings-happy-birthday-to-itself/2278500/","userABCookie":"kabc_content_recs-577*variant_c_trending-2482,wls_content_recs-584*variant_a_control_wls-2516,wpvi_content_recs-586*variant_b_trending_wpvi-2521,otv_web_content_rec-539*variant_c_trending-2268,otv_search_page_design_unification-546*variant_b_search_redesign-2300,abcn_popular_reads_exp-542*variant_b_7days_filter-2288","id":"2278500","section":{"name":"kgo","path":"kgo","root":"kgo"},"title":"Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself","type":"post","link":"https://abc7news.com/post/mars-rover-sings-happy-birthday-to-itself/2278500/","owner":{"byline":"","origin":"KTRK","source":"KTRK"},"source":"KTRK","taxonomy":{"adTags":[],"places":["houston"],"segments":[],"tags":["nasa","mars","birthday","houston"],"topic":"science"},"featuredData":{"featuredMedia":{"m3u8":"","isLive":false,"isClone":false,"img":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg","src":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg","shieldUrl":"https://watch.auth.api.espn.com/video/auth/media/2278517/asset?context=news_kgo&aspectRatio=16x9","station":"KTRK","section":"kgo","id":"2278517","cmsTitle":"Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself","title":"Mars rover sings 'Happy Birthday' to itself","caption":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","desc":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","date":1501959443,"callout":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","type":"video","viewType":"hidden","firstPublished":1501959443,"firstPub":"2017-08-05 18:57:23 +00:00","dateModified":"2017-10-25 03:32:01 +00:00","tracking":{"comscore":{},"heartbeats":{},"nielsen":{}},"tags":"nasa,mars,birthday,linear-video,None","topic":"science","placement":"Feature","trackingName":"kgo","location":"houston","keywords":"","cmsVideoType":"","seasonNumber":"","showTitle":"","episodeNumber":"","webHref":"https://abc7news.com/videoClip/2278517/","shareUrl":"https://abc7news.com/videoClip/2278517/","embedUrl":"https://abc7news.com/video/embed?pid=2278517","contentType":"shortform","appVersion":"prod-fe5f541ac445-release-05-27-2026.12","aspectRatio":"16x9","externalId":"080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid_web","source":{"url":"","type":"none"},"images":[{"url":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg?w=1024"}],"metaCaption":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","duration":133,"imageCredit":"KTRK","imageCaption":false,"authenticationTypes":[],"cues":[],"description":"Happy Birthday to the Mars rover! On this day five years ago, NASA's Curiosity rover touched down on Mars.","entityType":"shortform","genre":"science","isSyndicatable":false,"isLinear":false,"language":"en","originating_station":"KTRK","references":{},"streamType":"onDemand","ambient":false,"leadImageCredit":"KTRK","originalImg":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg"},"img":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg?w=992","imageOverride":"https://cdn.abcotvs.com/dip/images/2278354_080517-nasa-nasamarshappybirthday-vid.jpg"},"fmDataType":"video","keywords":"mars rover, happy birthday mars rover, mars, mars space craft, 2278500","videoPlayer":"dmp"}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/post/mars-rover-sings-happy-birthday-to-itself/2278500/?userab=kabc_content_recs-577*variant_c_trending-2482,wls_content_recs-584*variant_a_control_wls-2516,wpvi_content_recs-586*variant_b_trending_wpvi-2521,otv_web_content_rec-539*variant_c_trending-2268,otv_search_page_design_unification-546*variant_b_search_redesign-2300,abcn_popular_reads_exp-542*variant_b_7days_filter-2288","vary":{"host":"abc7news.com","cached":true,"path":"/post/mars-rover-sings-happy-birthday-to-itself/2278500/","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","country":"us","userab":"kabc_content_recs-577*variant_c_trending-2482,wls_content_recs-584*variant_a_control_wls-2516,wpvi_content_recs-586*variant_b_trending_wpvi-2521,otv_web_content_rec-539*variant_c_trending-2268,otv_search_page_design_unification-546*variant_b_search_redesign-2300,abcn_popular_reads_exp-542*variant_b_7days_filter-2288","region":"gdpr"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};