Pasadena, United States (AFP) — NASA’s Mars 2020 rover will head off for the Red Planet next year. But like Voyager, Galileo and Cassini before it, the mission’s epic journey began in a “clean room” in California. One of two ultra-sterile labs used for spacecraft assembly at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, on the outskirts of Los Angeles, the eggshell-white room was briefly and exceptionally opened to journalists Friday. “We need to keep the […]
Tag: Mars
What’s that sound? A “Marsquake” heard by NASA
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — NASA on Tuesday released two audio clips of seismic activity on Mars after an “exquisitely sensitive” detector was set down on the planet’s surface late last year. The quakes, far too quiet to be picked up by the human ear, were recorded by the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) in May and July. Scientists hope that studying how seismic waves move through the planet’s interior will reveal the deep […]
‘Marsquake’: first tremor detected on Red Planet
PARIS, France (AFP) — Scientists said Tuesday they might have detected the first known seismic tremor on Mars in a discovery that could shed light on the ancient origins of Earth’s neighbor. A dome-shaped probe known as SEIS landed on the surface of Mars in December after hitching a ride on NASA’s InSight spacecraft. Its instruments measure surface vibrations caused by weather but are also capable of detecting movement from deep within the planet — […]
After the Moon in 2024, NASA wants to reach Mars by 2033
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — NASA has made it clear they want astronauts back on the Moon in 2024, and now, they are zeroing in on the Red Planet — the US space agency confirmed that it wants humans to reach Mars by 2033. Jim Bridenstine, NASA’s administrator, said Tuesday that in order to achieve that goal, other parts of the program — including a lunar landing — need to move forward more quickly. “We […]
Mission complete: NASA announces demise of Opportunity rover
by Ivan Couronne Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — During 14 years of intrepid exploration across Mars, it advanced human knowledge by confirming that water once flowed on the red planet — but NASA’s Opportunity rover has analyzed its last soil sample. The robot has been missing since the US space agency lost contact during a dust storm in June last year and was declared officially dead Wednesday, ending one of the […]
Mission complete: NASA announces demise of Opportunity rover
by Ivan Couronne Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — During 14 years of intrepid exploration across Mars it advanced human knowledge by confirming that water once flowed on the red planet — but NASA’s Opportunity rover has analyzed its last soil sample. The robot has been missing since the US space agency lost contact during a dust storm in June last year and was declared officially dead Wednesday, ending one of the most […]
NASA to make final attempt to contact Mars Opportunity Rover
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US space agency NASA will make one final attempt to contact its Opportunity Rover on Mars late Tuesday, eight months after it last made contact. The agency also said it would hold a briefing Wednesday, during which it will likely officially declare the end of the mission. Opportunity landed on Mars in 2004 and covered 28 miles (45 kilometers) on the planet, securing its place in history after lasting well […]
Elon Musk shows off prototype of Mars-bound rocket, Starship
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has unveiled the first pictures of a retro-looking, steely rocket called Starship that may one day carry people to the Moon and Mars. Musk posted pictures on Twitter late Thursday of the Starship Hopper prototype, which awaits its first flight test in Texas in the coming weeks. “Starship test flight rocket just finished assembly at the @SpaceX Texas launch site. This is an actual picture, not […]
NASA’s InSight lander ‘hears’ wind on Mars
TAMPA, United States (AFP) — Humans can now hear the haunting, low rumble of wind on Mars for the first time, after NASA’s InSight lander captured vibrations from the breeze on the Red Planet, the US space agency said Friday. The strong gusts of wind, blowing between 10 to 15 mph (five to seven meters a second), were captured as they moved over the solar panels on InSight, an unmanned lander that touched down on […]
Cheers as Mars InSight spacecraft lands on Red Planet
by Laurent BANGUET / with Kerry SHERIDAN in Tampa Agence France-Presse PASADENA, United States (AFP) — Cheers and applause erupted at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Monday as a waist-high unmanned lander, called InSight, touched down on Mars, capping a nearly seven-year journey from design to launch to landing. The dramatic arrival of the $993 million spacecraft — designed to listen for quakes and tremors as a way to unveil the Red Planet’s inner mysteries, […]
Cheers as Mars InSight spacecraft lands on Red Planet
by Laurent Banguet / with Kerry SHERIDAN in Tampa Agence France Presse PASADENA, United States (AFP) — Cheers and applause erupted at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Monday as a $993 million unmanned lander, called InSight, touched down on the Red Planet and managed to send back its first picture. The high-drama landing of the waist-high spacecraft capped a nearly seven year journey, from spacecraft design, to launch to eventual touchdown, marking the eighth successful […]
NASA picks ancient Martian river delta for 2020 rover touchdown
by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France Presse TAMPA, United States (AFP) — NASA has picked an ancient river delta as the landing site for its uncrewed Mars 2020 rover, to hunt for evidence of past life on Earth’s neighboring planet, officials said Monday. Even though the Red Planet is now cold and dry, the landing site, Jezero Crater, was filled with a 1,600-foot (500-meter) deep lake that opened to a network of rivers some 3.5 to […]





