NASA scientists celebrated the safe landing of a £1.6 billion robot rover the size of a Mini Cooper on Mars in one of the most daring and difficult interplanetary operations ever attempted.

It is hoped the rover – named Curiosity – will establish whether or not the planet's environment supported life in the past.

Dr John Bridges, from the University of Leicester, one of two British scientists leading teams on the mission, wrote in a live blog from mission control: "Lots of very happy and excited people in this room. What an opportunity we have now to explore this fascinating planet."

Curiosity was lowered to the surface on three nylon tethers suspended from a hovering "sky crane" kept airborne with retro rockets. An expected signal confirming it had landed was received on Earth at 6.31am UK time yesterday. There were scenes of jubilation at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

Curiosity can now start its 98-week mission, exploring a Martian crater that billions of years ago may have been filled with water. The nuclear powered rover is bristling with sophisticated technology designed to discover if life may have existed on the planet.

It is twice as long and five times as heavy as the twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity, which landed on Mars in 2004.

Curiosity was too heavy to have its landing cushioned by bouncing air bags – the method used for the previous rovers. Instead, scientists came up with the "sky crane" solution.

After entering the Martian atmosphere at 13,200mph, the capsule containing the rover was first slowed by friction and then a supersonic parachute.

Closer to the ground, the descent stage carrying Curiosity was released, firing retro rockets positioned around its rim. Above the landing site in Gale Crater, the rover was dropped to the surface on 25ft tethers.

There is geological evidence of past water at the target of Gale Crater.

Proof Curiosity was on Mars came with images showing the planet's rock-strewn surface and one of the rover's wheels.