Tag Mars

Mars, the enigmatic red planet, has long captivated our imagination, challenging us to unravel its geological mysteries. One of the most intriguing aspects of Mars is its heavily cratered surface, a tapestry woven by eons of meteorite impacts. These celestial collisions have played an important role in shaping the Martian landscape, leaving behind craters that […]

NASA’s InSight probe has provided groundbreaking insights into the frequency of meteorite impacts on Mars. By analyzing seismic data recorded by the spacecraft’s seismometer, researchers have discovered that the Red Planet is bombarded with basketball-sized meteorites on an almost daily basis. Before this study, estimates of meteorite strikes on Mars were based on visual observations […]

Imagine being an astronaut on a long-haul flight to Mars, and suddenly, components on your spacesuit break down. With Mars being approximately 140 million miles from Earth, getting replacement parts or a new suit is simply not an option. However, Pablo de Leon, chair of the Department of Space Studies at the University of North […]

The Martian polar ice caps are composed of layers of water ice and frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice). These layers can exhibit minor variations in composition and thickness, which play an important role in the radar interference phenomenon observed by planetary scientists. Researchers at Cornell University have conducted extensive simulations to model the layering scenarios […]

If liquid water exists today on Mars, it may be too deep underground to detect with traditional methods used on Earth. However, listening to earthquakes that occur on Mars – or marsquakes – could offer a new tool in the search, according to a team led by Penn State scientists. When quakes rumble and move […]

NASA is actively exploring groundbreaking mission innovations for the highly anticipated Mars Sample Return Program. The space agency has awarded contracts to seven industry proposers to conduct 90-day studies aimed at developing more affordable and faster ways to retrieve valuable samples from the Martian surface and bring them back to Earth. Among the companies selected […]

Initially considered a simple route free of obstructions, Neretva Vallis has presented numerous geological opportunities for the science team. After navigating through a dune field to avoid challenging boulders, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover arrived at its latest area of interest on June 9. The route change not only reduced travel time to the “Bright Angel” […]

The recent solar storm on May 20th unleashed an intense X12 solar flare, followed by a coronal mass ejection that hurled charged particles towards Mars. NASA’s robotic explorers on the Red Planet provided valuable insights into the effects of this powerful event. If astronauts had been standing near the Curiosity rover during this storm, they […]

In a surprising discovery that challenges our understanding of the dispersal of water on Mars, early morning frost has been found on the peaks of colossal volcanoes in the Tharsis plateau region. This unexpected phenomenon was captured by the European Space Agency’s Trace Gas Orbiter, revealing a shimmering, icy layer on the summits of these […]

The groundbreaking discovery of water frost on Mars was made on the towering Tharsis volcanoes, which are the tallest mountains in our Solar System. Among these colossal peaks is Olympus Mons, a behemoth that rises a staggering 26 kilometers (16 miles) above the surrounding plains. Despite the thin Martian atmosphere, the high altitudes of these […]