The forested mountains of northeastern Utah can be as green and inviting as any in the world, but just over the ridge, you can find an alien landscape as well: rolling hills of red dirt and rock, much like the vistas visible from the Spirit rover on Mars. The similarity isn’t just coincidental. Like at least part of the Red Planet, Utah’s red hills were once covered with water. In fact, as you drive through Logan Canyon, the fossilized traces of marine worms from 400 million years ago are visible literally on the side of the road. Today, that bounty of water is gone, leaving Martian-style dirt and stone that is reddened by iron oxide.
Space mission to the sea
Three astronauts and a NASA engineer will test space station equipment
Rovers roll on (and up and down) Mars
Months after their warranties have expired, both of NASA
Mars rover to take risky trip into crater
NASA’s Opportunity rover will be sent into a big impact crater on Mars despite the risk that it may not be able to get out, the space agency said Friday. The potential scientific value of exploring Endurance Crater outweighs the risk that the six-wheeled rover may not be able to drive back up its inner slopes, mission officials said.
The space challengers
NASA has announced the lineup for this month’s workshop on the Centennial Challenges, a program that aims to offer prizes for feats related to the space agency’s new exploration vision. Friday is the registration deadline for the event, which will be conducted at the Washington Hilton June 15-16. Check out the Centennial Challenges Web site for more information and a link to online registration.
NASA
In the midst of its extended mission on Mars, NASA’s Spirit rover ran into a software glitch over the weekend and rebooted itself, mission managers said Monday. The anomaly represented the first software reset since Spirit froze up early in its mission. This time, however, the consequences were not nearly as serious.
Epcot attendance up
A rocket ride to Mars is bringing tourists back into the orbit of Disney’s Epcot theme park.
NASA plans contests for space feats
What happens when worlds collide? NASA will find out next month
Mars mission far from over
When you’ve proven the existence of a salty lake on Mars, what do you do for an encore? NASA’s newly supercharged rovers may be racing toward an answer.

