How much did it cost to send the Curiosity rover to Mars?

Mars rover Curiosity, the centerpiece of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, is coming together for extensive testing prior to its late 2011 launch. ... Accountability Office, which attributed much of the increase to a 68 percent rise in hardware development costs since the program's 2003 inception. read more

WASHINGTON — NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission needs an $82 million cash infusion to maintain its late November launch date after development of the $2.47 billion rover exhausted program funding reserves last year, according to agency officials. read more

The Curiosity Mission cost over $2.5 billion in total, which spanned across 8 years, also adding on the 23 months-long exploration of Mars itself. The spending covered research, construction, the rocket (provided by United Launch Alliance), testing, and the mission itself. read more