Amidst growing costs and the increasing complexity of missions, NASA and ESA are making concrete overtures of cooperation at a space summit in the UK.

A critical component of NASA's Mars exploration program involves bringing planetary samples back to Earth for in-depth analysis, plans for which are detailed in the latest issue of Astrobiology, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

The first robotic mission to return samples to Earth from Mars took a further step toward realization with the recent publication of a mission design report by the iMARS Working Group.

The U.S. space agency is developing plans for the first mission designed to deliver Martian soil samples to Earth. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said it is working with the International Mars Architecture for Return of Samples, or IMARS, to plan such a mission.

To: TECHNOLOGY EDITORS Contact: Dwayne Brown of NASA Headquarters, Washington, +1-202- 358-1726, dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov WASHINGTON, Dec.