MARS - SKY NIGHTLY

Mar 13, 2017 (JPL)

Opportunity is located just outside the rim of Endeavour Crater, less than half a mile (700 meters) away from the next big science objective, a gully. The rover...

New evidence for a water-rich history on Mars

Mar 07, 2017 (SPX)

Mars may have been a wetter place than previously thought, according to research on simulated Martian meteorites conducted, in part, at the Department of Energy...

Paleolake deposits on Mars might look like sediments in Indonesia

Mar 07, 2017 (SPX)

In their GSA Bulletin article published online last week, Timothy A. Goudge and colleagues detail the clay mineralogy of sediment from Lake Towuti, Indonesia, u...

Humans May Quickly Evolve on Mars, Biologist Claims

Mar 03, 2017 (Sputnik)

An evolutionary biologist has suggested that human colonists on Mars could go through rapid evolution, eventually becoming an entirely new human species. Scott ...

Remnants of a mega-flood on Mars

Mar 03, 2017 (ESA)

ESA's Mars Express has captured images of one of the largest outflow channel networks on the Red Planet. The Kasei Valles channel system extends around 3000 km ...

NASA Orbiter Steers Clear of Mars Moon Phobos

Mar 03, 2017 (JPL)

NASA's MAVEN spacecraft performed a previously unscheduled maneuver this week to avoid a collision in the near future with Mars' moon Phobos. The Mars Atmospher...

NASA Explores Opportunity for Smaller Experiments to 'Hitch a Ride' to Mars

Mar 01, 2017 (SPX)

NASA's goals for human deep space exploration are complex and ambitious. To maximize resources as it pushes the boundaries of exploration, the agency is explori...

Science checkout continues for ExoMars orbiter

Feb 28, 2017 (ESA)

Next week, the ExoMars orbiter will devote two days to making important calibration measurements at the Red Planet, which are needed for the science phase of th...

Martian Winds Carve Mountains, Move Dust, Raise Dust

Feb 28, 2017 (JPL)

On Mars, wind rules. Wind has been shaping the Red Planet's landscapes for billions of years and continues to do so today. Studies using both a NASA orbiter and...

Mars is more Earth-like than moon-like

Feb 27, 2017 (SPX)

Mars' mantle may be more complicated than previously thought. In a new study published in the Nature-affiliated journal Scientific Reports, researchers at LSU d...

NASA mulls putting astronauts on deep space test flight

Feb 25, 2017 (AFP)

The US space agency said Friday it is considering putting astronauts on an upcoming test flight of the deep space capsule Orion as it aims to orbit the Moon. Or...

Opportunity leaving crater rim for the Plains of Meridiani

Feb 21, 2017 (JPL)

Opportunity is located on the rim of Endeavour crater, about to leave the rim and get back on the plains of Meridiani. The rover is not leaving the crater, just...

Researchers pinpoint watery past on Mars

Feb 17, 2017 (SPX)

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have discovered a patch of land in an ancient valley on Mars that appears to have been flooded by water in the not-too-d...

Scientists say Mars valley was flooded with water not long ago

Feb 15, 2017 (UPI)

Researchers have discovered the signature of periodic groundwater flooding in a Martian valley -- further evidence that water flowed on Mars in the not-so-dista...

Scientists shortlist three landing sites for Mars 2020

Feb 14, 2017 (JPL)

Participants in a landing site workshop for NASA's upcoming Mars 2020 mission have recommended three locations on the Red Planet for further evaluation. The thr...

Opportunity passes 44 kilometers of surface travel after 13 years

Feb 14, 2017 (JPL)

Opportunity is located on the rim of Endeavour Crater. The rover is making progress towards the next major scientific objective, the gully less than a kilometer...

ISRO saves its Mars mission spacecraft from eclipse

Feb 10, 2017 (Sputnik)

Scientists from Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) have successfully executed crucial orbital maneuvering on Mars spacecraft to give it another lease of ...

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter plays crucial role in search for landing sites

Feb 10, 2017 (JPL)

At an international workshop this week about where NASA's next Mars rover should land, most of the information comes from a prolific spacecraft that's been orbi...

Angling up for Mars science

Feb 08, 2017 (ESA)

ESA's latest Mars orbiter has moved itself into a new path on its way to achieving the final orbit for probing the Red Planet. The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter arr...

'Curiosity' exposes low CO2 level in Mars' primitive atmosphere

Feb 07, 2017 (SPX)

The CO2 level in Mars' primitive atmosphere 3.5 billion years ago was too low for sediments, such as those found by NASA's Curiosity exploration vehicle in area...