Curiosity’s Parachute Shifts in the Wind on Mars
A sequence of seven images shows how the parachute used in Curiosity’s landing on Mars has shifted in response to wind. Photos from NASA’s Mars…
Mars News
Astronomers Watch as Comet 2013 A1 Heads Towards Mars
Astronomers around the world are monitoring Comet 2013 A1, watching to see if it will strike Mars. Over the years, the spacefaring nations of Earth…
NASA’s MAVEN Spacecraft to Study Martian Atmosphere
Scheduled to launch in late 2013, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft will study the Martian upper atmosphere in detail, gathering information about relevant processes so scientists can…
Curiosity Discovers More Hydration of Minerals Near Clay-Bearing Rocks
Using infrared-imaging and an instrument that shoots neutrons into the ground to probe for hydrogen, scientists have found more evidence of water-bearing minerals in rocks…
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Reveals That Mars Could Have Supported Life
Researchers have identified sulfur, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and carbon in the powder rock sample obtained by NASA’s Curiosity rover, suggesting that Mars could have…
Scientists Create a 3D View of the Ancient Water Channels of Mars
Using data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, scientists create a 3D reconstruction of ancient water channels below the Martian surface. NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter took…
NASA to Hold a Briefing on Curiosity’s Analysis of Rock Powder From Mars
NASA has announced that they will hold a briefing to discuss the Curiosity rover’s analysis of the first sample of rock powder ever collected on…
Comet 2013 A1 to Make a Very Close Flyby of Mars
Scientists have projected that comet 2013 A1 will make a very close approach to Mars in October 2014, possibly passing as close as 31,000 miles…
NASA Completes Computer Swap for Curiosity Rover
NASA ground engineers have completed a computer swap for the Curiosity rover in response to a memory issue, shifting the rover into a minimal-activity precautionary…
Curiosity Rover Image Confirms First Drilled Mars Rock Sample
New images from NASA’s Curiosity rover confirm that it has successfully drilled and collected the first-ever rock sample from the interior of a rock on…
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Drills and Collects First Martian Bedrock Sample
New images show that NASA’s Curiosity rover has successfully drilled and collected a rock powder sample from the Martian bedrock to be analyzed. NASA’s Curiosity…
Nakhla Fragment Shows First Evidence of Water Dissolving the Surface of Mars
A newly published study details the test results of a 1.7-gram fragment of a Martian meteorite known as Nakhla, showing the first evidence of water…
Mars Orbiter Shows McLaughlin Crater May Have Once Held a Groundwater-Fed Lake
New data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter suggests that the McLaughlin Crater once held a lake fed by groundwater. A NASA spacecraft is providing new…
Curiosity Preparing to Drill Into First Martian Rock
If all goes as planned, NASA’s Curiosity rover may drill its first rock sample in the coming days, providing scientists with important details about the…
Curiosity Returns Images of “Snake River” & Explores “Yellowknife Bay”
Over the holidays, NASA’s Curiosity rover returned new images of “Snake River” and is now in a shallow depression called “Yellowknife Bay.” This is the…
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Nearing Yellowknife Bay
NASA’s Curiosity rover continues to explore the Martian surface, approaching an area called “Yellowknife Bay,” which is a potential location for selecting the first target…
NASA’s Curiosity Finds Clues to Changes in Mars’ Atmosphere
Instruments aboard Curiosity have analyzed samples of the atmosphere collected near the “Rocknest” site in Gale Crater, finding that the top of the Martian atmosphere…
Mineralogy of Martian Soil Is Similar to Soils of Volcanic Origin in Hawaii
Using its Chemistry and Mineralogy instrument, NASA’s Curiosity rover has completed initial experiments showing the mineralogy of Martian soil is similar to weathered basaltic soils…
