Can you help discover water on Mars? Finding water on different regions on Mars has implications for understanding its complex geologic history, the possible existence of past life and the sustenance of potential future astronauts. Many space missions have taken photographs of the surface of the red planet, and some of them might show a subtle clue pointing to water on Mars that has been missed. By close inspection of images, following curiosity, applying scientific principles, applying knowledge about features on the Martian surface, and applying principles of planetary geology, such clues might be brought to light.
March 31st, 2005
Shape-Shifting Robot Nanotech Swarms on Mars
Engineers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., have successfully tested a shape-shifting robotic pyramid. As the engineers watched like anxious new parents, the robot pyramid traveled across the floor of a lab at NASA Goddard. Robots of this type will eventually be miniaturized and joined together to form “autonomous nanotechnology swarms” (ANTS) that alter their shape to flow over rocky terrain or to create useful structures like communications antennae and solar sails.
March 8th, 2005
NASA Simulates Small Martian ‘Dust Devils’ and Wind in Vacuum Tower
Befitting the powerful Roman god of war for which Mars was named, the red planet’s ‘dust devils’ can be as lofty as five miles (eight kilometers) tall. A dust devil is a wind-generated vortex, or whirlpool in the atmosphere. Nearly every child has seen small whirlwinds that spin dust or leaves in spirals on Earth. Besides large ‘dust devils,’ the martian environment, from time to time, spawns huge dust storms that may cover nearly the entire planet. Both martian winds and dust devils, big and little, are constantly changing the planet’s environment. To expand knowledge of dust devils and the red planet’s feisty winds, NASA is simulating both of them in a laboratory at NASA Ames Research Center, located in California’s Silicon Valley.
February 18th, 2005
NASA Statement on False Claim of Evidence of Life on Mars
News reports on February 16, 2005, that NASA scientists from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, have found strong evidence that life may exist on Mars are incorrect.
February 17th, 2005
NASA & Navy Sign on for a New Safety Exchange
NASA’s Office of Safety and Mission Assurance signed an agreement with the U.S. Navy Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) to participate in each other’s audits of institutional management programs and projects. NASA’s Chief of Safety and Mission Assurance Bryan O’Connor and the Navy’s Executive Director for Undersea Warfare John James signed the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Tuesday at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
January 28th, 2005
NASA Hosts Lunar and Martian Exploration Workshop
NASA’s future exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond will involve utilizing natural resources at the many destinations. To gain a better understanding of the properties and behaviors of lunar and martian environments, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center is hosting the “Granular Materials in Lunar and Martian Exploration” workshop Feb. 2 and 3, 2005 at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
January 28th, 2005
NASA Rovers’ Adventures on Mars Continue
NASA lit a birthday candle today for its twin Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. The Spirit rover begins its second year on Mars investigating puzzling rocks unlike any found earlier. The rovers successfully completed their three-month primary missions in April. They astound even their designers with how well they continue operating. The unanticipated longevity is allowing both rovers to reach additional destinations and to keep making discoveries. Spirit landed on Jan. 3 and Opportunity Jan. 24, 2004, respectively.
January 8th, 2005
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission Status
Even as the Spirit and Opportunity rovers complete a year of successful operation on Mars, the next major step in Mars Exploration is taking shape with preparation of NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for launch in just seven months. The orbiter is undergoing environmental tests in facilities at Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colo., where its Atlas V launch vehicle is also being prepared. Developments are on schedule for a launch window that begins on Aug. 10, 2005.
January 4th, 2005
NASA Exploration of Mars Strategic Roadmapping Committee Meeting Today
The NASA Exploration of Mars Strategic Roadmap Committee will be meeting 4-6 January 2005 at NASA JPL. The agenda for the meeting is as follows:
* Mars science: What we know today.
* Science planning for exploring Mars.
* Overview of robotic science missions.
* Challenges of Mars robotic and human exploration.
* Human mission studies, options, and technology needs.
* Key issues to be studied.
Member Listing
December 15th, 2004
NASA Selects Investigations for the Mars Science Laboratory
NASA has selected eight proposals to provide instrumentation and associated science investigations for the mobile Mars Science Laboratory rover, scheduled for launch in 2009. Proposals selected today were submitted to NASA in response to an announcement of opportunity released in April. The Mars Science Laboratory mission, part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, would deliver a mobile laboratory to the surface of Mars to explore a local region as a potential habitat for past or present life. The laboratory would operate under its own power. It is expected to remain active for one Mars year, equal to two Earth years, after landing.