Hear Sounds From Mars Captured by NASA's Perseverance Rover
Thanks to two microphones aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover, the mission has recorded nearly five hours of Martian wind gusts, rover wheels crunching over gravel, and motors whirring as the spacecraft moves its arm. These sounds allow scientists and engineers to experience the Red Planet in new ways – and everyone is invited to listen in.
First moon rocks in 45 years fill gap in lunar history
On Dec. 3, 2020, an ascent vehicle belonging to China’s Chang’e 5 space mission rose up from the surface of the moon, carrying just under 4 pounds of lunar rocks. Roughly two weeks and more than 200,000 miles later, they landed in Mongolia, marking the first time in 45 years that new moon rocks had returned to Earth.
NASA's Mars Fleet Lies Low As Sun Moves Between Earth and Red Planet
NASA will stand down from commanding its Mars missions for the next few weeks while Earth and the Red Planet are on opposite sides of the Sun. This period, called Mars solar conjunction, happens every two years.
First Woman Graphic Novels and Interactive Experiences
First Woman tells the tale of Callie Rodriguez, the first woman to explore the Moon. While Callie is a fictional character, the first female astronaut and person of color will soon set foot on the Moon – a historic milestone and part of upcoming NASA missions. Through a series of graphic novels and digital platforms, First Woman aims to capture our attention and unite the next generation of explorers who will return to the Moon.
NASA Confirms Thousands of Massive, Ancient Volcanic Eruptions on Mars
Some volcanoes can produce eruptions so powerful they release oceans of dust and toxic gases into the air, blocking out sunlight and changing a planet’s climate for decades. By studying the topography and mineral composition of a portion of the Arabia Terra region in northern Mars, scientists recently found evidence for thousands of such eruptions, or “super eruptions,” which are the most violent volcanic explosions known.
Affordable housing in outer space: Scientists develop cosmic concrete from space dust
Transporting a single brick to Mars can cost more than a million British pounds - making the future construction of a Martian colony seem prohibitively expensive. Scientists at The University of Manchester have now developed a way to potentially overcome this problem, by creating a concrete-like material made of extraterrestrial dust along with the blood, sweat and tears of astronauts.
Mars rocks collected by Perseverance boost case for ancient life
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover has now collected two rock samples, with signs that they were in contact with water for a long period of time boosting the case for ancient life on the Red Planet.
NASA Perseverance Rover Collects First Mars Rock Sample
NASA’s Perseverance rover today completed the collection of the first sample of Martian rock, a core from Jezero Crater slightly thicker than a pencil. Mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California received data that confirmed the historic milestone.
Mars mission to pause for about 50 days
The Chinese probe Tianwen-1 will remain deactivated for about 50 days from mid-September due to the effect of solar electromagnetic radiation, local media reported today.
During this period, the Earth and Mars will be at the maximum distance and aligned with the Sun in between, so the solar electromagnetic radiation “will affect communications,” Zhang Rongqiao, Tianwen’s chief designer, told the media yesterday.
Such radiation will make communications difficult between the components of the mission, made up of an orbiter, a landing module and a rover called Zhurong, and control from Earth.
NASA plans yearlong Mars simulation to test limits of isolation
NASA wants four people to test the limits of human isolation by placing them in a simulated Mars habitat for a year, cut off from the world except for delayed communication and possible simulated spacesuit walks.
The simulation, planned for Johnson Space Center in Houston, won’t be the first time the space agency attempts to mimic a stay on Mars, but it will be one of the longest.