By Paul Scott Anderson, on November 25th, 2019
Color-coded image of Jezero Crater and the landing site of Mars 2020 (in the ellipse). The delta is on the western side of the crater. Darker colors are lower elevation and lighter colors are higher. Image Credit: NASA/JPL
For the past few decades, rovers and landers on Mars have focused on finding out whether […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on June 4th, 2017
Mudstone lakebed sedimentary deposits seen by the Curiosity rover in Gale crater. The latest findings show that the lake in the crater was stratified and could have supported a wide variety of microorganisms. Photo Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Was Mars ever habitable? Did life ever actually exist there? Those are two of the biggest questions […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on December 21st, 2016
A “self-portrait” of Curiosity beside one of the dunes in the Bagnold Dunes. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
The Curiosity rover has now resumed its journey toward Mount Sharp after experiencing some delays due to a faulty drill mechanism. The rover conducted a short drive over the past weekend toward a new location with “plenty […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on December 15th, 2016
View of the path ahead for the Curiosity rover, looking toward the foothills of Mount Sharp. The various sedimentary layers on the mountain are a geological record of different environmental conditions in the past. Photo Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA held another press briefing yesterday about the latest findings from the Curiosity rover on Mars, […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on April 28th, 2016
Mars’ atmosphere is thin, dry, and cold now, but it used to be thicker and contained a lot more oxygen. Image Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser
Mars’ atmosphere is thin and cold, composed primarily of carbon dioxide along with other trace gases and some water vapor. Evidence has continued to mount, however, that the rarified […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on February 2nd, 2016
Image of “cauliflower” silica formations found by the Spirit rover in 2008 near Home Plate in Gusev crater. Do they hold clues to ancient life on Mars? Photo Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Was there ever life on Mars? That is one of the longest-running and most debated questions in planetary science, and while there have […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on December 31st, 2015
High-resolution view of Pluto from New Horizons, showing rugged mountains and vast icy plains. Image Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI
To say that 2015 has been a great year for planetary exploration would be an understatement, with fantastic new discoveries from around the Solar System. From our first ever close-up look at Pluto and its moons, […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on August 20th, 2015
New low-angle “selfie” of the Curiosity rover taken while it was in Marias Pass, consisting of multiple images stitched together. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
After extensive investigations of rock layers in Marias Pass, a shallow valley near the base of Mount Sharp, the Curiosity rover is now heading southwest again, to continue gradually climbing […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on August 5th, 2015
Self-portrait of the Curiosity over in Gale crater on Mars. Part of Mount Sharp is in the background. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA’s Curiosity rover has just reached its third anniversary milestone on Mars, after landing in Gale crater on Aug. 5, 2012, and since then has made some incredible science discoveries, with more […]
Like this:Like Loading...
By Paul Scott Anderson, on July 15th, 2015
View of an igneous clast named Harrison, which is embedded in a conglomerate rock in Gale crater, and features elongated light-toned feldspar crystals. This mosaic is a combination of an image from Mastcam with higher-resolution images from ChemCam’s Remote Micro-Imager. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/IRAP/U. Nantes/IAS/MSSS
The Curiosity rover, still roaming in Gale crater, has […]
Like this:Like Loading...
|
|