NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Who says a Rolling Stones concert is only rock ‘n’ roll? Not Robert Downey Jr., who kicked off Thursday night’s Rose Bowl concert by announcing the band has its own stone … on Mars.
Iron Man himself hit the stage before Mick, Keith and the fellas rocked the crowd of 60,000 … and shared an origin story about the legendary band and the exploration of the red planet.
Hello “@RollingStones Rock” Who could hang a name on you? Um… us!
When @NASAInsight touched down on the Red Planet, its engines sent a rock rolling across Mars’ surface. We named it for the band. Take a closer look and learn how #MarsRocks get named: https://t.co/xY0TfoksJP pic.twitter.com/BZlABAMaZJ
— NASA (@NASA) August 23, 2019
@NASA
Long story short, Mars and the band are now cosmically linked forever because NASA has named an iconic rock on the planet’s surface … “Rolling Stones Rock.”
As Downey Jr. enthusiastically explained … NASA’s successful landing of the InSight spacecraft last year on Mars sent a golf ball-sized rock rolling a few feet across the surface — and the rocket scientists came up with a clever name for it.
It might just be one small stone for man, but it’s one giant leap for Stones’ kind.
TMZ.com
BTW … 76-year-old Jagger looked like he was ready for space exploration himself, showing no signs of slowing after the heart valve procedure earlier this year, which delayed the tour.
![](https://imagez.tmz.com/image/6f/4by3/2019/08/23/6f668567a378400d9a3e0d2ab1760fe9_md.jpg)
Backgrid
After the show, photogs got this shot of the frontman with a device hanging next to his neck — and while there’s a rumor it’s there to monitor his heart … that just ain’t so.
A rep for the band tells us it’s simply Mick’s in-ear monitors which he’s been wearing during concerts for the last, oh … 60 or so years.