Hera burns towards Mars
ESA's Hera mission has completed the first critical maneuver on its journey to the Didymos binary asteroid system since launch on 7 October......»»
Invasive grasses are worsening bushfires across Australia"s drylands
As the semi-arid Pilliga Scrub burns in New South Wales, many of us are thinking about fire once again. It's an El Niño summer in the hottest year on record. And there's a remarkable amount of grass drying out and ready to burn......»»
Hera"s solar wings are cleared for flight
The solar wings that will power ESA's Hera asteroid mission for planetary defense as it ventures out to meet the Dimorphos asteroid have been cleared for flight. As part of its current test campaign at ESA's ESTEC Test Center in the Netherlands, the.....»»
Image: Ice flows on Mars
On Aug. 18, 2023, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captured ridged lines carved onto Mars' landscape by the gradual movement of ice. While surface ice deposits are mostly limited to Mars' polar caps, these patterns appear in many non-polar Marti.....»»
Recent volcanism on Mars reveals a planet more active than previously thought
A vast, flat, "featureless" plain on Mars surprised researchers by revealing a much more tumultuous geologic past than expected, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Arizona. Enormous amounts of lava have erupted from numerous.....»»
If a tree burns in Canada"s unmanaged forest, does anyone count the carbon?
Earlier this fall, a commentary in the journal Communications Earth & Environment argued for a change to the implementation of the Paris Agreement's reporting mechanisms. The authors called for all countries to report carbon emissions and removals ta.....»»
Dangbei Mars Projector Review: Cinema at home
The Dangbei Mars is a versatile and capable projector, poised to elevate the entertainment experience in your living space.Projectors are inherently space-saving devices, and they seem to be growing in popularity for those living in dorms, apartments.....»»
Perseverance joins the 1,000-sols club on Mars, congratulated by Curiosity
NASA's Perseverance rover this week reached 1,000 martian sols after arriving on the faraway planet in February 2021......»»
Colonizing Mars could be dangerous and ridiculously expensive. Elon Musk wants to do it anyway
Elon Musk has spent nearly two decades rallying SpaceX fans around his goal of colonizing Mars, something world governments aren't currently attempting — in part because of the unfathomable price tag such a mission will entail......»»
Potential signs of life on Mars might be easier to find than first thought
A school science experiment is answering questions that are out of this world. While there had been concerns that any evidence of organic matter on Mars might be obscured by the planet's geology, new research suggests this might not be the case......»»
NASA"s MAVEN observes the disappearing solar wind
In December 2022, NASA's MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) mission observed the dramatic and unexpected "disappearance" of a stream of charged particles constantly emanating off the sun, known as the solar wind. This was caused by a spec.....»»
NASA’s Mars helicopter is about to attempt a colossal flight
NASA's Ingenuity helicopter is about to attempt its longest flight across Mars since its first hover in April 2021......»»
The longstanding mystery of Mars" moons—and the mission that could solve it
The two small moons of Mars, Phobos (about 22km in diameter) and Deimos (about 13km in diameter), have been puzzling scientists for decades, with their origin remaining a matter of debate. Some have proposed that they may be made up of residual debri.....»»
Deep within an inhospitable desert, a window to first life on Earth
CU Boulder geologist Brian Hynek has helped to document what may be a unique kind of ecosystem on Earth—and a possible window into the earliest stages of life on this planet 3.5 billion years ago, and even life on ancient Mars......»»
NASA’s Mars helicopter still working fine after month-long break
It's always a tense moment for NASA as it comes to fly its Mars helicopter after a long break, but the plucky aircraft performed just fine on its latest trip......»»
What Mars would look like from an orbiting space station
NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter snapped unprecedented horizon images of the Red Planet, capturing clouds as well as a moon, Phobos. Imagine being in the International Space Station and looking at the world below — except instead of gazing dow.....»»
Mapping Mars: Deep learning could help identify Jezero Crater landing site
Preparations for a safe landing on Earth, such as finding the most even terrain and equipping the appropriate landing gear, are also crucial for Mars missions......»»
Mars Odyssey spacecraft pulls a sideways maneuver to capture the planet’s horizon
A new image from a NASA orbiter shows an unusual view of Mars, capturing the planet's horizon complete with clouds......»»
Could life exist in molecular clouds?
Our search for life beyond Earth is still in its infancy. We're focused on Mars and, to a lesser extent, ocean moons like Jupiter's Europa and Saturn's Enceladus. Should we extend our search to cover more unlikely places like molecular clouds?.....»»
Zhurong rover detects mysterious polygons beneath the surface of Mars
China's Zhurong rover was equipped with a ground-penetrating radar system, allowing it to peer beneath Mars's surface. Researchers have announced new results from the scans of Zhurong's landing site in Utopia Planitia, saying they identified irregula.....»»
A tiny quadcopter could gather rocks for China"s sample return mission
Space exploration is always changing. Before February 2021 there had never been a human made craft flying around in the atmosphere of another world (other than rocket propelled landers arriving or departing). The Mars Perseverance rover changed that,.....»»