Exploring the Red Planet (original) (raw)
Mars has plenty of minerals that suggest a watery past, but that does not mean that the Red Planet once looked like Earth
Mapping Mars: Where Have All the Landers Gone? [Interactive]
The first man-made object to land on Mars arrived 40 years ago this month, and NASA's Curiosity rover should soon depart for the Red Planet. Here is a look at where humankind's many Mars landers have touched down, and where the planet betrays a history of all-important liquid water. Find out more in Exploring the Red Planet
John Matson
Timeline of Mars Exploration, from 1960 to 2011 [Interactive]
Two Mars missions are scheduled to launch this month. How have their predecessors fared? Find out more in Exploring the Red Planet
John Matson
Space & PhysicsNovember 1, 2011Digging Mars: Mars Science Lab Set to Blast Off
The Mars Phoenix mission revived hopes that the Red Planet may be habitable, preparing the way for a new rover to be launched this month
Peter H. Smith
Space & PhysicsAugust 16, 2011Opportunity Knocks at Martian Crater
Seven years into its three-month mission, the Mars rover Opportunity reaches Endeavour Crater, a possible geologic treasure trove. John Matson reports
Newfound features on the Red Planet hint that liquid water may still exist there
John Matson
Space & PhysicsJuly 22, 2011NASA's Next Mars Rover to Land at Huge Gale Crater
The site is a giant crater called Gale, thought to harbor clues of ancient water activity on the Martian surface
Denise Chow, SPACE.com
Space & PhysicsJune 9, 2011What Would Happen If Earth and Mars Switched Places?
George Musser
Space & PhysicsJune 6, 2011Mass Arrest: Jupiter's Early Migration Could Explain Mars's Small Size
The wandering orbit of Jupiter at the dawn of the solar system may have had wide-ranging effects
John Matson
Space & PhysicsApril 21, 2011Deep Freeze: Mars Orbiter Finds Massive Stores of Buried Dry Ice
Radar soundings point to huge deposits of carbon dioxide near the Red Planet's south pole, which may have once contributed to a different climate
John Matson
Humankind has been confined to Earth's orbital environs for decades, but plans abound for manned missions to deeper reaches of the solar system
John Matson
Space & PhysicsApril 1, 2011Rethinking the Dream of Human Spaceflight
Fifty years after the first human ventured into space, we need some creative thinking
Lawrence M. Krauss
Despite a gummed up drill bit and three days of very un-Martian precipitation, engineers pronounced the test a success--and learned to expect the unexpected, whether it be in the California outback or on Mars
Bruce Lieberman
Space & PhysicsJune 3, 2010Water Spirit: Rover Findings Hint of a Warmer, Wetter Era on Mars
Bountiful carbonate minerals in a rock outcrop on the Red Planet could have formed under watery greenhouse conditions billions of years ago
John Matson
In a speech from Florida's Space Coast, the president argued the case for his proposed NASA budget and outlined his vision for human spaceflight
John Matson
Space & PhysicsMarch 19, 2010Room for Debate: Where, If Anywhere, Is NASA Headed?
Without a firm destination, will NASA's ambitions for a return to manned spaceflight beyond Earth orbit founder? Or, will scrapping the Constellation Program give the U.S. more options for human exploration of the moon, Mars and the asteroids?
John Matson
Space & PhysicsJanuary 26, 2010Unfree Spirit: NASA's Mars Rover Appears Stuck for Good
Now designated a stationary science platform, Spirit's next order of business is bracing for a long, harsh winter
John Matson
On the frontier of planetary exploration, nothing is easy
John Matson
Space & PhysicsNovember 27, 200910 Views of Earth from the Moon, Mars and Beyond [Slide Show]
For more than 40 years, missions throughout the solar system have sent back stunning images of our home planet
John Matson
Space & PhysicsSeptember 2, 2009How to Get Humans on Mars: Make It a One-Way Trip
Philip Yam
Space & PhysicsSeptember 1, 2009Phobos-Grunt Probe to Put Microbial Life in Mars Orbit
A tagalong to the Russian sample-return mission makes some researchers uncomfortable
JR Minkel
Space & PhysicsJuly 1, 2009Space Geology: From the Moon to Mars
The only scientist and field geologist ever to visit the moon offers some pointers to those who will one day visit Mars
Harrison H. Schmitt
Space & PhysicsMarch 2, 2009Thawing Martian Ice Age Left Telltale Water Tracks
Signs of repeated ice- and snow-melt in a mid-latitude gully may point to the most recent water activity on the Red Planet's surface
Adam Hadhazy