Free from the “iron curtain” that separated Americans and Russians during the Cold War, the Russian Space Agency and NASA are working together to penetrate the real iron curtain of dust covering Mars.
June 5th, 2005
Mars rover freed from sand dune
The Mars rover Opportunity resumed rolling freely across the Martian surface Saturday after scientists freed it from a sand dune where it had been mired for nearly five weeks, NASA officials said. Engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission, cheered when images beamed back to Earth showed the rover’s wheels were free.
June 3rd, 2005
Postcards from Mars
NASA’s Opportunity rover is still struggling to break free from a Martian sand dune, and half a world away, the Spirit rover is delving deeply into the geology of Gusev Crater. As a result, the Mars mission teams seem to be in a head-down, nose-to-the-grindstone mode. Nevertheless, NASA is releasing Red Planet imagery that ranks high on the coolness scale.
May 24th, 2005
NASA’s Rovers Continue Martian Missions
NASA’s Mars rover Opportunity is trying to escape from a sand trap, while its twin, Spirit, has been busy finding new clues to a wet and violent early Martian history. “Spirit has finally found the kind of geology you can really sink your teeth into,” said Dr. Steve Squyres of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. He is principal investigator for the Mars rovers’ science instruments. According to Squyres, multiple layers of rock in the hills Spirit is exploring suggest successive deposits of water-altered explosive debris.
May 24th, 2005
Spirit Rover Traces Mars’ Explosive Past, Opportunity Slowly Digs Out
Explosions and falling rock once peppered the Martian hills that NASA
May 9th, 2005
Mars Rover: Digging Out Of Tough Terrain
When the Opportunity rover landed on Mars last year, scientists were thrilled that it made a cosmic
April 27th, 2005
Hard-Working Mars Rovers: On the Scent Of Science
There is never a dull moment for a robot on Mars. A fleeting dust devil comes into view — just right for picture taking. An outcrop of rock is found that yields insight into the planet
April 26th, 2005
Has Spirit Found Bedrock in Columbia Hills? Universe Today
Since arriving at the Columbia Hills, Spirit, one of the Mars Exploration Rovers, has encountered some mysterious phenomena. The rover
April 24th, 2005
Movie Clip Shows Whirlwinds Carrying Dust on Mars
NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is taking movies of dust devils — whirlwinds carrying dust — scooting across a plain on Mars. “This is the best look we’ve ever gotten of the wind effects on the martian surface as they are happening,” said Dr. Mark Lemmon, a rover team member and atmospheric scientist at Texas A&M University, College Station.