"I'm pleased to report that Curiosity today had her first successful drive on Mars," said Matt Heverly, NASA's mobility systems engineer for the rover. "This drive checkout, coupled with yesterday's wheel checkout means we have a fully functioning drive system on the rover."

Heverly, speaking during an afternoon news conference, said the rover drove forward a few meters, turned in place and drove back. He also said the short drive showed researchers that the rover is on firm ground, without too much sinkage.

Today's drive, no matter how short, was a critical step for Curiosity. "It couldn't be more important," said Peter Theisinger, Curiosity project manager. "We built a rover. Unless the rover roves, we really haven't accomplished anything. The fact that everything is on track is a moment - a big moment."

And in a nod to American , NASA named Curiosity's landing site "Bradbury Landing."

Michael Mayer, a mission scientist with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said his peers wanted to honor the man who wrote and inspired many of them to be curious about space exploration and Mars specifically.