This image from ESA’s Mars Express shows Aganippe Fossa, a fascinating groove at the base of Mars’s colossal Arsia Mons volcano. Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin A fascinating feature takes centre stage in this new image from ESA’s Mars Express: a dark, uneven scar cutting through the marble ground at the base of a gigantic volcano. This … Read more
A little over a decade ago, a robotic rover on Mars finally found an answer to a burning question. It is now clear that the Red Planet does indeed have organic material buried in the sediment of its ancient lakebeds. Since then, we’ve found more and more organic molecules on Mars that are distributed in … Read more
As shown in this artist’s concept, the SHERLOC instrument is located at the end of the robotic arm of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech After six months of effort, an instrument that helps NASA‘s Perseverance Mars Rover’s search for possible signs of ancient microbial life is back online. After a mechanical failure halted SHERLOC … Read more
Newly released images from the European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter show a breathtaking view of a huge ‘scar’ on the surface of Mars known as Aganippe Fossa. This remarkable geologic formation is a graben, a steep-sided, trench-like gorge that extends for about 370 miles (600 kilometers), longer than the Grand Canyon. These images provide … Read more
A satellite orbiting Mars has captured the best images ever of a giant “scar” carved across the Red Planet’s surface. The dark rift, which is surrounded by unusual zebra-like stripes, is likely the result of extreme volcanic activity millions of years ago. The striking surface feature, called Aganippe Fossa, is a rift – a “trench-like … Read more
Orbital configuration of Mars Express (red) and trace gas orbiter (blue) during a typical mutual radio occultation observation, with a black and white arrow indicating the direction of radio communication between the two spacecraft. Credit: Radio science (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2023RS007873 Using the repurposed equipment, a team including researchers from Imperial College London measured parts of … Read more
Science and discovery 05/07/2024 1081 views 12 I like this ESA’s Earth Return Orbiter, the first spacecraft to image an object orbiting another planet, has reached a major milestone by returning the first Martian samples to Earth. Today, the critical design review for the spacecraft platform was completed with the cooperation of European industry and … Read more
NASA’s Viking was the first American spacecraft to land on Mars, sending back images of craters, massive volcanoes and giant canyons from its surface. In the 1970s, NASA launched two identical robots — Viking 1 and Viking 2, each equipped with landers and orbiters — to the Red Planet. After the mission, NASA reported that … Read more
Desert moss could hold the key to terraforming Mars, according to a recent study by Chinese scientists. Due to its extraordinary resilience, Syntrichia caninervis (S. caninervis), a moss species found in extreme deserts from Tibet to Antarctica, is being touted as a ‘pioneer plant’ for creating a habitable environment on MarsScientists believe that this plant … Read more
Science and discovery 03/07/2024 1089 views 10 I like this This new image from ESA’s Mars Express reveals a fascinating feature: a dark, uneven scar cutting through the marbled ground at the foot of a giant volcano. A broader view of Aganippe Fossa This scar, known as Aganippe Fossa, is an irregular, approximately 600 km … Read more