MARS - SKY NIGHTLY

The Exploration of Murray Ridge Continues

Mar 18, 2014 (JPL)

Opportunity continues to explore 'Murray Ridge' on Solander Point, part of the rim of Endeavour Crater. On Sol 3596 (March 6, 2014), the rover moved forward to ...

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Resumes Full Duty

Mar 16, 2014 (JPL)

Engineers have restored NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to full operations, following a March 9 unplanned swap of duplicate computers aboard the spacecraft. ...

Concerns and Considerations with the Naming of Mars Craters

Mar 13, 2014 (SPX)

Recently initiatives that capitalise on the public's interest in space and astronomy have proliferated, some putting a price tag on naming space objects and the...

NASA Orbiter Safe After Unplanned Computer Swap

Mar 13, 2014 (JPL)

NASA's long-lived Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter put itself into a precautionary safe standby mode March 9 after an unscheduled swap from one main computer to anot...

Mars name-a-crater scheme runs into trouble

Mar 11, 2014 (AFP)

The world's paramount astronomical authority on Tuesday slapped down a bid to hawk the names of Mars' craters, saying the Red Planet's monickers are not up for ...

Lava floods the ancient plains of Mars

Mar 11, 2014 (ESA)

Two distinct volcanic eruptions have flooded this area of Daedalia Planum with lava, flowing around an elevated fragment of ancient terrain. The images were acq...

India's Mars mission to reach Red Planet in 200 days

Mar 10, 2014 (XNA)

India's maiden Mars mission, launched in November last year, is likely to reach the Red Planet in 200 days, the state-owned space agency has said. "If everythin...

Opportunity Mars Rover Exploring Murray Ridge Area

Mar 09, 2014 (JPL)

Opportunity is exploring 'Murray Ridge' on Solander Point, part of the rim of Endeavour Crater. The rover continues to investigate the region called 'Cook Haven...

Mars Rover Oppportunity Crushing Rocks With Wheels

Mar 06, 2014 (JPL)

Opportunity is exploring "Murray Ridge" on Solander Point, part of the rim of Endeavour Crater. Investigation continued on "Anchor Point," Sol 3581 (Feb. 19, 20...

Robotic Arm Crushes Rock for Study

Mar 05, 2014 (JPL)

Opportunity is exploring 'Murray Ridge' on Solander Point, part of the rim of Endeavour Crater. Investigation continued on 'Anchor Point,' Sol 3581 (Feb. 19, 20...

Relay Radio on Mars-Bound NASA Craft Passes Checkout

Mar 05, 2014 (JPL)

The team operating NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission successfully completed, on Feb. 19, 2014, the initial post-launch power-on and ...

NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover Views Striated Ground

Mar 03, 2014 (JPL)

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has reached an area where orbital images had piqued researchers' interest in patches of ground with striations all oriented in a sim...

Curiosity Adds Reverse Driving for Wheel Protection

Feb 20, 2014 (JPL)

Terrain that NASA's Curiosity Mars rover is now crossing is as smooth as team members had anticipated based on earlier images from orbit. On Tuesday, Feb. 18, t...

NASA Mars Orbiter Views Opportunity Rover on Ridge

Feb 20, 2014 (JPL)

A new image from a telescopic camera orbiting Mars shows NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity at work on "Murray Ridge," without any new impact craters nea...

Curiosity Drives On After Crossing Martian Dune

Feb 19, 2014 (JPL)

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover is continuing its traverse toward enticing science destinations after climbing over a dune spanning a gap in a ridge. The rover cove...

The World Above and Beyond

Feb 18, 2014 (SPX)

It's almost five times easier to leave Mars than it is to leave Earth or Venus. At least, that's the case for many particles in the upper atmosphere. Mars' uppe...

Mars Rover Heads Uphill After Solving 'Doughnut' Riddle

Feb 17, 2014 (JPL)

This image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows where a rock called "Pinnacle Island" (lower left corner) had been before it appeared in front o...

NASA solves mystery of Mars 'doughnut' rock

Feb 15, 2014 (AFP)

NASA scientists were finally able to explain the origin of the mysterious rock shaped like a jelly doughnut that appeared near the rover Opportunity in early Ja...

ASU Mars camera to get new views of Red Planet

Feb 14, 2014 (SPX)

For the first time since the Viking Mars mission of the 1970s, which ended more than a generation ago, scientists will soon begin systematic observations of Mar...

Calculated Risks: How Radiation Rules Mars Exploration

Feb 14, 2014 (SPX)

Nearly everything we know about the radiation exposure on a trip to Mars we have learned in the past 200 days. For much longer, we have known that space is a ri...