Tag: Mars 2020
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NASA loses contact with MAVEN, Perseverance continues roving around Jezero
In early December, NASA lost contact with its MAVEN spacecraft, which has been orbiting Mars since 2014. MAVEN was supposed to reestablish communications with NASA’s Deep Space Network on Dec. 6 after emerging from behind Mars during a routine blackout period when the spacecraft’s orbit takes it behind the red planet, blocking all communications to…
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Perseverance faces challenges climbing to crater rim as sample tube supply dwindles
In August, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover began its fifth science campaign — the rover’s most ambitious yet. The campaign has seen Perseverance climb the western rim of Jezero Crater and face its steepest and most challenging terrain yet, all the while continuing to take surface samples and look for signs of ancient microbial life. Currently, Perseverance…
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Ingenuity’s mission ends after 72 flights
NASA announced its Mars helicopter, Ingenuity, had ended its mission after experiencing an anomaly during its 72nd flight on Jan. 18. Images recovered after the flight showed severe damage to at least one of the aircraft’s rotor blades, making further flights impossible. The damage spelled the end for the small helicopter that made history in…
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1,000 sols into their mission, Perseverance and Ingenuity continue to investigate Jezero Crater
After celebrating their 1,000th sol, or Martian day, on Mars, NASA’s Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter are continuing to explore Jezero Crater on the Red Planet. Recently, the robotic pair completed their extensive investigation of the ancient river delta within Jezero, which contains evidence of flowing water that may have once filled Jezero thousands of…
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Perseverance finds Mars river could have been ‘wilder,’ Mars Express takes new volcano images
May has been a big month for scientific discoveries on Mars, as NASA’s Perseverance rover has continued to find more convincing evidence of what could have once been a “deeper and faster-moving” river than data initially suggested. New images taken by the rover’s main camera show two mosaics of course sediment grains and tall, curving…
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Perseverance finds Mars river could have been ‘wilder,’ Mars Express takes new volcano images
May has been a big month for scientific discoveries on Mars, as NASA’s Perseverance rover has continued to find more convincing evidence of what could have once been a “deeper and faster-moving” river than data initially suggested. New images taken by the rover’s main camera show two mosaics of course sediment grains and tall, curving…
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Perseverance completes sample return depot, Ingenuity continues flights
As the two-year landing anniversary of NASA’s Perseverance rover and its small scouting helicopter Ingenuity draws near, the pair continue to explore Jezero Crater and unlock the many secrets of the red planet. Perseverance recently completed a significant milestone as part of an effort to one day return Martian samples to Earth. Meanwhile, Ingenuity continues to defy all expectations as it flies…
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NASA, ESA unveil advanced architecture for Mars Sample Return
On July 27, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) unveiled new advanced mission architecture for the upcoming Mars Sample Return mission. Additionally, NASA completed its system requirements review for the mission, bringing the ambitious project one step closer to the completion of its conceptual design phase. The new mission architecture takes advantage of new…
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Mars 2020 continues science in Jezero, Mars Odyssey solves Martian frost mystery
In late April, Perseverance and Ingenuity arrived at the edge of Jezero Crater’s ancient river delta — an area of the crater that was likely once formed by flowing water, and a major focus of the Mars 2020 mission. Perseverance‘s arrival at the delta marked the beginning of the rover’s second science campaign in the…
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Mars 2020 continues science in Jezero, Mars Odyssey solves Martian frost mystery
In late April, Perseverance and Ingenuity arrived at the edge of Jezero Crater’s ancient river delta — an area of the crater that was likely once formed by flowing water, and a major focus of the Mars 2020 mission. Perseverance‘s arrival at the delta marked the beginning of the rover’s second science campaign in the…