Tag: Mars
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NASA begins to chart path forward on its Mars Sample Return architecture following independent review
This illustration shows a concept for multiple robots that would team up to ferry to Earth samples of rocks and soil being collected from the Martian surface by NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover.Credit: NASA/ESA/JPL-Caltech The next decade will be a critical time for the exploration of Mars with the multi-agency Mars Sample Return (MSR) being the…
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Through international collaboration, scientists find cause of InSight’s most powerful Marsquake
An international team of scientists has found the cause of the largest Martian seismic event, or Marsquake, observed by NASA’s Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) Mars lander. After ruling out a meteor impact, they concluded the event must have been caused by a release of stress within the planet’s crust.…
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China Details Solar System Exploration Plans
In the last few weeks, China has not only conducted several launches — of which one failed — but also detailed its Solar System exploration plans for the next decade, with updated details and target dates for several missions. Chinese Long-Term Solar Exploration Plan At the 74th International Astronautical Congress, China revealed an updated roadmap…
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How scientists are mitigating space travel’s risks to the human body
When 17 people were in orbit around the Earth all at the same time on May 30, 2023, it set a record. With NASA and other federal space agencies planning more manned missions and commercial companies bringing people to space, opportunities for human space travel are rapidly expanding. However, traveling to space poses risks to…
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Mars Society unveils its plan to establish technology institute, perhaps in Seattle
A computer-generated image shows an early Mars settlement. (Image via Midjourney, 2023) The nonprofit Mars Society is getting set to take the next giant leap in its mission to support Red Planet exploration and settlement, by establishing a Mars Technology Institute to develop the tools and processes those settlers will need. Robert Zubrin, the Mars…
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India’s accomplishments in space are getting more impressive
It’s been more than a week since India’s Chandrayaan 3 mission landed on the Moon, and it’s a good time to assess where the world’s most populous nation stands relative to other global space powers. The successful arrival of the Chandrayaan 3 mission’s Vikram lander on the Moon made India the first country besides China…
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India’s accomplishments in space are getting more impressive
It’s been more than a week since India’s Chandrayaan 3 mission landed on the Moon, and it’s a good time to assess where the world’s most populous nation stands relative to other global space powers. The successful arrival of the Chandrayaan 3 mission’s Vikram lander on the Moon made India the first country besides China…
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Using data from InSight, scientists discover that Mars is rotating faster
In December 2022, NASA lost contact with its Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) Mars lander, which had been operating on the Martian surface for just over four years. In the time since InSight’s mission was declared over, scientists have continued to analyze the incredible data the lander collected and have…
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The helicopter on Mars just flew again after surviving an emergency landing
By the standard of some of its previous flights, the most recent voyage of NASA’s intrepid Ingenuity helicopter on Mars was nothing special. Over a period of 24 seconds, the small helicopter rose to an altitude 5 meters above the red planet’s dusty surface and then touched back down in the same spot. During some…
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After 11 years on Mars, Curiosity continues to climb the slopes of Mount Sharp
On Aug. 6, 2012, NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission, comprised of the new Curiosity rover, officially began when Curiosity was successfully lowered onto the Martian surface via a first-of-its-kind skycrane. Curiosity‘s landing location was at the base of Mount Sharp (officially referred to as Aeolis Mons) in Gale Crater — a 3.5 billion-year-old crater that scientists believe was…