Latest Mars exploration Stories

Brett Smith for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online After a month without contact with their rover, the Mars Curiosity team has selected their next target for drilling: a flat rock called Cumberland. According to a NASA statement, Cumberland is about nine feet west of Curiosity's first drilling target, a Martian stone they've dubbed John Klein. In February, Curiosity took the first rock sample ever collected on Mars from that rock. An on-board analysis of John Klein found signs of an...

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Two prominent aerospace industry organizations are recognizing the contributions of NASA, especially the achievements of the team that landed NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars in August, with coveted awards. The National Aeronautic Association will present its Robert J. Collier Trophy to the Mars Science Laboratory Team of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., at an event in Arlington, Va., Thursday night. At an event in Washington on...

PASADENA, Calif., May 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The team operating NASA's Curiosity Mars rover on Mars has selected a second target rock for drilling and sampling. The rover will set course to the drilling location in coming days. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO ) This second drilling target, called "Cumberland," lies about nine feet (2.75 meters) west of the rock where Curiosity's drill first touched Martian stone in February. Curiosity took the...

WASHINGTON, May 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Two prominent aerospace industry organizations are recognizing the contributions of NASA, especially the achievements of the team that landed NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars in August, with coveted awards. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO ) The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) will present its Robert J. Collier Trophy to the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Team of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)...

[ Listen to the Podcast Series: Is A Mission To Mars Possible? ] Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online During the Humans to Mars Summit at George Washington University yesterday, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden laid down some thoughts about the US space agency sending man to the Red Planet. Bolden started off his keynote speech by addressing the growing international interest in sending humans to Mars, while also pointing out how even President Barack Obama has...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online Scientists at Princeton University and the Caltech believe that Mount Sharp on Mars was formed by wind, not water. NASA's Curiosity rover is sitting on Mars right now looking for signs of past life. The space agency chose Mount Sharp at the massive Gale Crater for its primary mission because of how eclectic the area is, potentially providing answers to questions regarding Mars' past. Mount Sharp is a roughly 3.5-mile high Martian...

KENTFIELD, Calif., May 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Adam Steltzner, NASA JPL lead engineer and College of Marin alumnus, led the Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL) Team for the NASA Mars Curiosity Rover. He has been a featured guest in variety of print stories, and on television and radio broadcasts, including the New Yorker, NPR, CNN and Nova. WHO: Dr. Adam Steltzner, lead mechanical engineer of the NASA Mars Rover Landing Project, guest lecturer WHAT: College of Marin Grand Opening,...

Brett Smith for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online NASA has announced a new campaign that will send people to Mars this year – well, at least their names and a brief message. The space agency is inviting people to submit their names online along with a personal message for a DVD to be carried aboard the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft that will be launched later this year. The DVD will carry every name submitted and three brief accompanying messages that...

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA is inviting members of the public to submit their names and a personal message online for a DVD to be carried aboard a spacecraft that will study the Martian upper atmosphere. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) Scheduled for launch in November, the DVD will be in NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft. The DVD is part of the mission's Going to Mars Campaign coordinated at the...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online NASA said its Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity placed itself in standby mode during April when the sun was blocking out communication with the Red Planet and Earth. The space agency said mission controllers learned of the changed status on April 27, when they first heard from Opportunity after the blocked communication period. Engineers pumped "fresh commands" into the rover on Monday to get it to resume operations. According to...