Latest Exploration of Mars Stories

WASHINGTON, July 30, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As NASA prepares for next week's Curiosity rover landing on Mars, William Shatner and Wil Wheaton share this thrilling story of NASA's hardest planetary science mission to date. The video titled, "Grand Entrance," guides viewers from entry through descent, and after landing. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) The video will be used at events around the country and shared on the web and social media. The...

[ Watch the Video: Seven Minutes Of Terror ] Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online As the newest rover nears its destination to the Red Planet, NASA engineers made some final adjustments to the Mars Science Laboratory's flight path on Sunday to ensure accuracy. NASA fired up MSL's thrusters for six-seconds, shifting its entrance into the Mars atmosphere by 13 miles. The space agency has its eyes on a 12-mile by 4-mile area of land next to Mount Sharp to land its...

DENVER, July 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- After a journey of 245 days across 352 million miles, the moment of truth for the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) begins late in the evening of August 5 when the spacecraft roars into the Martian atmosphere, traveling at 13,200 miles an hour. The final seven minutes ­- the entry, descent and landing (EDL) - will determine the fate of the mission, and a perfect performance of the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) Space Systems aeroshell is absolutely...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online One of the most complicated landings ever performed on Mars will be taking place 354-million-miles away on August 5 at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and it will be supported by the European Space Agency's Mars Express. NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) will be delivering the newest rover late-night on August 5, after encountering what has been tagged as "seven minutes of terror." The spacecraft will enter the Mars atmosphere...

WASHINGTON, July 16, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA's most advanced planetary rover is on a precise course for an early August landing beside a Martian mountain to begin two years of unprecedented scientific detective work. However, getting the Curiosity rover to the surface of Mars will not be easy. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) "The Curiosity landing is the hardest NASA mission ever attempted in the history of robotic planetary exploration,"...

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA will hold a news conference at 1 p.m. EDT Monday, July 16, to discuss the upcoming August landing of the most advanced robot ever sent to another world. A new public-engagement collaboration based on the mission also will be debuted. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) The event for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft will be held in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters, 300...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online As Curiosity continues to trot its way through space towards Mars, a NASA official acknowledged that the mission could still face trouble. NASA's new rover is expected to reach the surface of the Red Planet on August 6, but just because the mission has found successes so far doesn't mean the mission is foolproof. One thing Doug McCuistion, the head of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, told attendees at the Farnborough Airshow was...

Media representatives are invited to a briefing on Tuesday, July 10 at 9 a.m. BST at the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow in Farnborough, England. NASA and industry officials will discuss the importance of the space program and the role of cost-efficient product development in the emerging new era of space travel and exploration. Doug McCuistion, director of NASA's Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters, Washington, and Siegfried Russwurm, CEO of Siemens Industry Sector,...

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Media representatives are invited to a briefing on Tuesday, July 10 at 9 a.m. BST at the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow in Farnborough, England. NASA and industry officials will discuss the importance of the space program and the role of cost-efficient product development in the emerging new era of space travel and exploration. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) Doug McCuistion, director of NASA's...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online NASA released a panoramic photo of the Martian surface taken by its Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity during the winter months. The rover completed its 3,000th day on Mars on July 2, helping NASA to reach past 15 years of having a robotic presence on the Red Planet. The space agency released a photo taken by Opportunity's panoramic camera (Pancam), showing the terrain where the explorer spent its most recent Martian winter. NASA...