This week NASA and the Centre national d’études spatiales (the French space agency, CNES) signed an agreement to work towards a future Mars lander set to launch in 2016. The mission is known as the Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations,…
Mars Rover Curiosity Has Now Driven Over 3 Miles
Following a few hiccups and a software upgrade during the holiday season, Mars rover Curiosity is now back to doing what it does best. NASA today revealed that Curiosity is currently on its way to drill another rock sample. The…
Mars Rover Curiosity Got a Software Upgrade For Christmas
While people on Earth were finishing up their Christmas shopping last week, NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity was receiving its own Christmas gift in the form of new software. According to NASA, Curiosity has now received its third software upgrade since…
Mars Rover Curiosity Dates a Rock, Makes Other Discoveries
Mars rover Curiosity has been on Mars now for over one year. In that time the rover has performed a variety of science observations, revealing to scientists even more about the surface of the red planet. Today, NASA announced that…
Mars Rover Curiosity Has Fired its Laser a Lot
NASA today officially announced that Mars rover Curiosity has fired its infrared laser more than 102,000 times. The 100,000th blast came back near the end of October, when the rover shot over 300 blasts at a rock named “Ithaca” from…
Mars Rover Curiosity Resumes Roving
NASA today announced that Mars rover Curiosity resumed its exploration of Mars this weekend. The rover’s exploration had been suspended last week following an unexpected electrical issue. This is the second time in November that Curiosity has been reactivated following…
Black Beauty Meteorite from Mars Found in Africa
CNN reports a mysterious meteorite has been discovered in the northern part of Africa, and scientists are dating it at 4.4 billion years. The study was published in the journal Nature. Nicknamed “Black Beauty,” the authors of the study believe…
Mars Rover Curiosity Halted Over Electrical Issue
NASA today announced that Mars rover Curiosity‘s planned research has been suspended temporarily. The rover is still functional, but has been put on hold while researchers examine an electricity issue that has been detected. This news comes just a week…
NASA Successfully Launches its MAVEN Mission to Mars
On Monday afternoon NASA successfully launched its Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) probe from Cape Canaveral in Florida. The probe’s solar arrays were deployed soon after it’s final rocket stage, sending it on its months-long journey to the planet…
Mars-Bound NASA Orbiter MAVEN Set to Launch
Mars has been quite the hot spot lately. First, discussions about cultivating a human population on the planet have circulated. Now, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft is being prepared for the Monday, November 18th launch that is set for 1:28 p.m. EST.…