Tag: Mars
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Video inspired by ‘The Martian’ tackles real-life mystery: How to sleep in space
Do sleeping astronauts have to worry about being tied down in zero-G? (Credit: Fox / Armed Mind) How do you get your Z’s in zero-G? Sleeping in space is one of the subjects tackled in a new video series from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment that capitalizes on the buzz generated by “The Martian.” Fox’s “Life in Space” series…
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Get a 360-degree view of that monster dune on Mars from NASA’s Curiosity rover
A portion of a 360-degree panorama captured by NASA’s Curiosity rover shows a portion of a 16-foot-high sand dune on Mars, with the summit of Mount Sharp in the far background. The bottom of the image is distorted due to the 360-degree effect. (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS) The 16-foot-high sand dune that…
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Year In Review, Part 3: The Waters of Mars herald future exploration goals
With the abundance of discoveries in planetary science this year, none was truly more important to the future of human exploration of other planets than the long-awaited confirmation that liquid water flows on the surface of present-day Mars. The discovery by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter came during a year of increased public attention toward Martian exploration…
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Speculation mounts over Elon Musk’s plan for SpaceX’s Mars Colonial Transporter
An animation shows a lander separating from the rest of the Mars Colonial Transporter. Later concepts suggest that the entire MCT would land as a unit. (Credit: Michel Lamontagne / ESA via YouTube) In the wake of SpaceX’s successful rocket landing, some of the company’s most ardent fans are guessing at the shape of the biggest…
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Launch of NASA’s next Mars mission delayed until at least 2018
NASA’s InSight lander is pictured inside Lockheed Martin’s satellite factory in Colorado. Credit: Lockheed Martin Persistent problems with a seismometer instrument package will keep NASA’s InSight Mars lander from departing for the red planet during a March launch period, and officials said they will consider shelving the $675 million project if the issues prove too…
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European Mars probe arrives at launch site
The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter is closed inside a shipping container before leaving Thales Alenia Space’s facility in Cannes, France, on Dec. 17. Credit: ESA – B. Bethge Three heavy-duty Antonov cargo planes flew components of Europe’s ExoMars orbiter and lander from Italy to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazkhastan last week, setting up for a…
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European Mars probe arrives at launch site
The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter is closed inside a shipping container before leaving Thales Alenia Space’s facility in Cannes, France, on Dec. 17. Credit: ESA – B. Bethge Three heavy-duty Antonov cargo planes flew components of Europe’s ExoMars orbiter and lander from Italy to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazkhastan last week, setting up for a…
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NASA holds up InSight lander mission to Mars due to leaky seismic instrument
An artist’s conception shows the InSight lander on the surface of Mars. The SEIS instrument is the light-colored dome at lower left. (Credit: NASA) NASA says it’s putting off next year’s scheduled launch of its InSight lander mission to Mars until at least 2018, due to a persistent leak in the spacecraft’s main seismic-sensing instrument.…
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For the first time in 27 years, U.S. produces plutonium-238 to power space missions
By producing 50 grams of plutonium-238, Oak Ridge researchers have demonstrated the ability to resume providing an energy source for deep-space missions. (Credit: ORNL) After a 27-year gap, the U.S. Department of Energy has resumed producing plutonium-238, the radioactive fuel that powers NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars and the New Horizons mission to Pluto and…
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Curiosity rover reaches Martian sand dunes
The rippled surface of the first Martian sand dune ever studied up close fills this Nov. 27, 2015, view of “High Dune” from the Mast Camera on NASA’s Curiosity rover. This site is part of the “Bagnold Dunes” field of active dark dunes along the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS NASA’s Curiosity rover…