Exploration of Mars

NASA is looking for volunteers willing to be trapped inside a simulated Martian environment that’s roughly the size of a two-bedroom apartment for a full year. Denis Villeneuve Had a Blast Building the Dune LegoThe space agency is now accepting applications for its second edition of CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog), which is scheduled to take place in spring 2025. The deadline for applications is April 2.A four-person crew will live and work inside a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot habitat that…

The SHERLOC instrument is mounted at the end of the robot’s arm.Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSSThe Perseverance rover is at risk of losing its ability to zap Martian rocks with lasers after one of its instruments began malfunctioning last month.A Transformer Is Headed to the MoonOne of two covers on SHERLOC, an instrument fitted on the end of the robot’s arm to look for microscopic clues on rocks, is partially open, interfering with the rover’s ability to collect scientific data, NASA announced on Tuesday. The covers…

Models of NASA’s Sojourner, Spirit, and Curiosity rovers. Image: NASA/JPL-CaltechOn July 4, 1997, a tiny, flat robot touched down on the surface of Mars and became the first wheeled vehicle to roam around on another planet. Since then, a fleet of Martian rovers have followed in the tracks of Sojourner and they have become bigger, better, and more autonomous over the years.Sojourner was followed by Spirit and Opportunity, both landing on Mars in 2004. Curiosity, which is still roaming the dusty Martian terrain, landed in…

NASA, in its relentless pursuit of space innovation, announced on Thursday the selection of 13 new projects for its 2024 Phase I awards under the Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program. These awards, totaling up to $175,000 each, are granted to teams proposing advanced and unconventional space technologies.Will You Click Windows’ New Copilot Button?The NIAC program, known for funding groundbreaking concepts, has previously contributed to notable missions such as the Mars Ingenuity helicopter and instruments used in…

Six California lawmakers wrote to NASA Administrator Bill Nelson last week to oppose the agency’s recent cuts to the Mars Sample Return mission, which aims to bring samples collected by the Perseverance rover on Mars to Earth.China's Plan to Land Astronauts on the MoonThe letter was written by congresspeople Judy Chu, Laphonza Butler, Mike Garcia, and Young Kim, as well as California senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla. In the letter, the six legislators described the NASA move as “short-sighted and misguided,” and…

NASA is pulling back from its Mars Sample Return program (MSR) in order to develop a revised way of bringing the Martian rocks back to Earth after its original plan was deemed unrealistic. China's Plan to Land Astronauts on the MoonDuring a meeting of the Planetary Science Advisory Committee on Monday, NASA officials announced that the space agency is pausing work on MSR in response to a recent report that called out the mission’s mounting costs and delays, Space Policy Online reported. Last week, three NASA centers…

NASA’s Perseverance rover will be parked at this location on Mars during the communication blackout. Image: NASA/JPL-CaltechFor the next two weeks, NASA will not be sending commands to its fleet of Martian rovers, orbiters, and spacecraft until the Sun moves out of the way.What Inspired Dominic Monaghan's Performance in Moriarty?The Mars solar conjunction is from November 11 to 25, a period that occurs every two years during which Earth and the Red Planet are on opposite sides of the Sun in their respective orbital path.…

For more than two years, NASA’sPerseverance rover has been roaming Mars, drilling for rock samples that may hold clues to ancient life on the Red Planet, but the six-wheeled robot can only travel so far. Luckily, the rover recently got some extra help from a river that once flowed on the surface of Mars.Three Astronauts May Be Stranded on the ISS After Disturbing Soyuz Coolant LeakIn late June, NASA’s Perseverance rover sealed its 20th rock sample in an airtight titanium tube nestled inside its belly. This particular…

Recent evidence gathered by China’s Zhurong rover points to a dramatic climate shift on Mars—a finding that could have a significant impact on our understanding of Earth’s climate evolution.Teyonah Parris and John Boyega on Working With Jamie Foxx | io9 InterviewChina’s Zhurong Mars rover collected rare evidence from the planet’s sand dunes that show a change in the direction of the wind, eroding the dunes’ crescent shape that formed during the glacial era. Instead, dark, longitudinal ridges now lay on top of the dunes…

The Perseverance rover snapped this image of the surface of Mars on June 23.Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/IRAPWhile roaming the Martian terrain, NASA’s Perseverance rover spotted an odd-shaped rock that may have traveled its way from space to land on the Red Planet.A Transformer Is Headed to the MoonUsing its SuperCam Remote Micro-Imager, the Perseverance rover snapped a series of images on Friday that revealed a donut-shaped rock laying on the surface of Mars. The large rock has a hole in the middle and is surrounded…