Mars
China is planning a complex Mars sample return mission
China is working on a complex mission to collect Mars rock samples and deliver them to Earth by building on the successes of recent moon and Mars missions.
Report offers way to ease Mars mission planetary protection requirements
Future Mars lander missions could adopt less stringent planetary protection requirements by landing in regions of the planet unlikely to allow any terrestrial contamination to propagate, a study concludes.
China is developing its own Mars helicopter
China is looking at ways of expanding its space exploration capabilities including through a vehicle similar in appearance to NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter.
NASA Mars smallsat mission passes review
A smallsat Mars mission that had to revise its plans after it lost its initial ride has won NASA approval to move into full-scale development.
China’s Zhurong rover returns landing footage and sounds from Mars
China has released landing process footage from its Zhurong rover as well as video and sounds of the vehicle roving on Mars.
Dropping power levels threaten InSight mission
Dust accumulation on the solar panels of NASA’s InSight Mars lander is reducing the power to the spacecraft and could force the mission to end within a year.
Mars smallsat mission gets second chance with Rocket Lab
A NASA-funded smallsat mission to Mars that lost its ride last year may get new life through a partnership with Rocket Lab.
Nelson uses Chinese Mars landing as a warning to Congress
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated China for successfully landing a rover on Mars, but also used the milestone to warn Congress of China’s competitive threat to American leadership in human spaceflight.
China’s Zhurong Mars rover lands safely in Utopia Planitia
China succeeded with its first planetary landing attempt Friday, safely setting down the solar powered Zhurong rover on the surface of Mars.
NASA exchanged data with China on Mars orbiters
NASA sought congressional approval to talk with Chinese counterparts and obtain information on the orbit of China’s new Mars spacecraft, a move intended to lower the risk of a collision with other Mars orbiters.
NASA steadily expands AI and autonomy for Mars exploration
NASA is turning increasingly to autonomy and machine learning to make the most out of Mars exploration missions, but don’t count on self-driving rovers to zip across the Red Planet anytime soon.
Hope enters orbit around Mars
The United Arab Emirates’ first Mars mission, Hope, successfully entered orbit around the planet Feb. 9.
Hope prepares to enter orbit around Mars
As the United Arab Emirates’ Hope spacecraft arrives at Mars, those involved with the mission have a mix of confidence and concern about the chances of successfully entering orbit.
MarCO cubesats prove small satellites add value beyond Earth orbit
Anthony Colaprete and his colleagues have been working for more than two years to develop small, low-power instruments to measure winds and obtain vertical profiles of dust and clouds.
NASA ceases efforts to deploy Mars InSight heat flow probe
After nearly two years of struggles, NASA has abandoned efforts to deploy a heat flow probe on its InSight lander into the surface of Mars.
NASA moves Mars Sample Return program into next phase of development
NASA is moving ahead with work on a pair of Mars sample return missions, although some in the planetary science community worry how the cost of that effort will affect other projects.
NASA considering commercial Mars data relay satellites
A constellation of commercial satellites could serve as a communications relay system for future NASA missions, such as an orbiter later this decade to search for subsurface ice there.
Op-ed | No, Mars is not a free planet, no matter what SpaceX says
Taken literally, Starlink users must agree with SpaceX that Mars is a “free planet” and that disputes concerning Starlink services provided on Mars or while en route to the red planet via a SpaceX Starship will be settled through self-regulation. But is this clause valid?
