Mars Curiosity rover update: American Geophysical Union meeting news conference, sparks rumors

The next news conference about the NASA Mars rover Curiosity will be held in San Francisco at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU).

Rumors and speculation that there are major new findings from the mission at this early stage are incorrect.

The news conference will be an update about first use of the rover's full array of analytical instruments to investigate a drift of sandy soil.

One class of substances Curiosity is checking for is organic compounds -- carbon-containing chemicals that can be ingredients for life.

At this point in the mission, the instruments on the rover have not detected any definitive evidence of Martian organics.