NASAs Mars Science Laboratory is on its way. In a little more than a month, the 1-ton rover, which launched in November, will descend to the Martian surface.

The nuclear-powered robot is designed to make spectacular new discoveries about the Red Planet. It will drill and analyze the Martian soil to search for signs of water, past or present, and determine whether or not the planet was ever able to support life.

MSL dwarfs its immediate predecessors, the rovers Spirit and Opportunity and could almost crush the first Martian rover, Sojourner, beneath one wheel. Bringing a robot this large down safely necessitates a never-before-attempted landing system, though the increased size has let scientists pack 10 state-of-the-art instruments aboard and should allow the robot to rove farther than any before.

Every time we land a new rover on Mars, our ability to understand the surface increases tremendously, said geologist John Grotzinger of Caltech who is the project scientist for the mission.

While scientists dont know exactly what new findings await the rover, they have good ideas of what they want to look for. The first few weeks of MSLs life on Mars are already planned out in detail and after the mission starts in earnest, researchers have a number of targets they are eager to explore.

Here, Wired takes a look at MSLs game plan after it gets its wheels on the ground on Aug. 5, and the early discoveries scientists are hoping to make.

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MSLs sky crane represents a brand new way to get a rover down to the surface of Mars. When the lander approaches the ground, it will fire rockets and hover 25 feet over the surface and then gently lower the robot down on wires. This landing system represents the limits of current technology, making MSL the largest mass to ever touch down on the Red Planet.

The new method doesnt ruffle the science team too much.

Were actually really excited about the fact that weve got this guided entry capability, said Grotzinger, adding that it allowed researchers to pinpoint their landing site with greater precision than ever. People get nervous about sky crane, but its really a better landing system from a safety point of view.

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What NASA’s Next Mars Rover Will Discover