Tag

Mars

All articles tagged with #mars

space2 hours ago•11 min saved

Mars in the Air: NASA bets on helicopters as the new surface explorers

NASA is shifting away from new Mars landers or rovers in the near term and betting on aerial drones, led by the SkyFall helicopters that will ride to Mars with the SR-1 Freedom nuclear‑electric propulsion testbed. SkyFall, a three‑helicopter demonstrator (plus a spare) planned for launch as early as late 2028, will separate from SR‑1 and autonomously land, carrying science payloads like a ground‑penetrating radar and transmitting data via orbiters. The mission foregoes a full rover payload, highlighting a push for a repeatable helicopter platform amid budget constraints and a broader move toward commercial partnerships for Mars exploration.

via Ars Technica|

#helicopters #mars #nasa

space-and-astronomy22 hours ago•56 min saved

Mars' southern mantle runs hotter, reshaping its interior story

New gravity data analyzed with tidal tomography from three NASA Mars missions (MGS, Mars Odyssey, MRO) show the southern hemisphere’s mantle is 200–400 C warmer than the north, possibly partly molten. This non-symmetric interior helps explain Mars’s pronounced north–south dichotomy and has implications for its volcanic and magnetic history, hydrology, and crustal evolution. The finding, published in Nature, points to future missions probing the planet’s interior.

via Yahoo|

#gravity #mantle #mars

space1 day ago•163 min saved

Mars interior revealed: hotter southern mantle beneath a cooler northern hemisphere

A gravity-based study using archival data from Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Odyssey, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter with a tidal tomography method shows the southern mantle is 200–400°C warmer than the north, implying a hotter, potentially partially molten interior that helps explain Mars’ hemispheric surface dichotomy and seismic/magnetic clues. The exact cause—ancient giant impact vs crustal thickness differences—remains uncertain, and future gravity data could test the 3D interior model.

via Space|

#gravity #interior #mantle

space-and-astronomy2 days ago•54 min saved

Mars Jellyfish Photo Explained: A Cosmic-Ray Glitch, Not a Creature

A jellyfish-shaped shadow spotted in a 2023 Curiosity NavCam image is not a real Martian organism but a cosmic-ray artifact hitting the camera sensor; such glitches are common on Mars due to its thin atmosphere and lack of a global magnetic field, and are typically seen in a single frame or a few frames, not on the surface. NASA/JPL notes that without detailed imaging analysis, the anomaly is best explained as a camera artifact rather than evidence of life.

via Yahoo|

#camera-artifact #cosmic-rays #curiosity

space2 days ago•4 min saved

Martian Jellyfish Mystery Sparks Theories, Likely a Camera Glitch

A photo from NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover (Aug 20, 2023) showing a horizon-shaped blob sparked jellyfish theories, but experts say it’s most likely a camera artifact—probably a cosmic-ray hit on the sensor or a readout glitch—especially since a nearby frame 13 seconds earlier doesn’t show the object.

via PetaPixel|

#cosmic-ray #curiosity-rover #image-artifact

space2 days ago•17 min saved

Curiosity's Mars tripod debunked as a brief camera glitch

NASA's Curiosity rover captured a brief, tripod-like speck in Gale Crater that went viral, but experts say it’s almost certainly a camera artifact caused by a high-energy particle hitting the NavCam sensor, a common cosmic-ray effect; the object appears in only one frame and is not seen in frames taken seconds before or after, suggesting no physical structure was present.

via Notebookcheck|

#camera-artifact #cosmic-ray #curiosity

space3 days ago•161 min saved

Curiosity climbs to 1 kilometer on Mars with Valle Grande panorama

NASA's Curiosity rover has reached roughly 1 kilometer in elevation on Mars, assembling a 323-image Mastcam panorama of Valle Grande on the side of Mount Sharp from Aug. 1–2, 2026 (sols 4,972–4,973), marking another milestone in its 14-year mission and adding to evidence of past water and organics on the planet.

via Space|

#curiosity #mars #mount-sharp

space3 days ago•6 min saved

Mars’s Glacial Spiders Prove the Planet Is Alive—Geologically Speaking

The piece argues the real intrigue on Mars isn’t whether life exists but the planet’s geologic activity, focusing on mid-latitude glaciers and the southern-polar araneiform “spiders” whose CO2-driven geysers show Mars remains dynamically alive on a geologic timescale even without life.

via Defector|

#araneiform #geology #glaciers

space4 days ago•5 min saved

Mars Jellyfish Myth Debunked: Cosmic Rays Create a Camera Glitch, Not a Creature

NASA's Curiosity captured a jellyfish-like dark mark in a 2023 NavCam image, but scientists say it's almost certainly a cosmic-ray artifact hitting the camera sensor rather than a Martian jellyfish; Mars's thin atmosphere and lack of a global magnetic field let cosmic rays strike detectors, and Curiosity routinely takes multiple frames to distinguish real features from glitches.

via ScienceAlert|

#camera-artifact #cosmic-rays #curiosity

science4 days ago•12 min saved

Inside Curiosity's command center: how NASA plans a Martian day

A ground-level portrait of NASA's Curiosity mission at JPL's Rover Operations Center, detailing the daily cycle of health checks, data analysis, and up‑linking hundreds of rover commands, as scientists choose targets, simulate drives, and plan experiments. The article describes Curiosity's climb through Gale Crater's sedimentary layers, the discovery of clay-rich mudstones and organic molecules suggesting ancient habitable conditions, and notes that definitive proof of life will require returning rocks to Earth.

via The Conversation|

#curiosity #gale-crater #mars

science4 days ago•4 min saved

Hidden Heat in Mars’ Mantle Reveals Clues to the North-South Divide

Using tidal tomography on 16 years of data from MGS, Odyssey, and MRO, scientists found Mars’ southern mantle is 400–750°F hotter than the north, a thermal asymmetry that mirrors the crustal dichotomy and may result from mantle convection or long-lasting insulation. The finding doesn’t settle the cause but introduces a powerful, non-landing method for probing planetary interiors and insights into Mars’ past habitability.

via 404 Media|

#dichotomy #mantle #mars

science4 days ago•38 min saved

Ancient Mars May Have Been More Habitable Than Thought

A Nature study using NASA's Curiosity rover finds mud-crack formations indicating long-lasting water cycling on Mars, suggesting the planet could have supported life in the past and perhaps even hosted humans, though many questions remain about how and why conditions changed.

via Currently.com|

#astrobiology #curiosity #habitability

space6 days ago•5 min saved

Mars Jellyfish: A Tiny Pixel Artifact in Curiosity’s Image

A Curiosity image from August 20, 2023 in Gale Crater shows a tiny jellyfish-shaped dark spot on a distant hill, which disappears in a later exposure. Because it’s only about 15 pixels and appears in a single frame, the most likely explanation is an imaging artifact—potentially a cosmic-ray hit or electronic/transmission glitch—rather than a real Martian object. The lack of corroborating data (wind sensors, additional images) means the true cause can’t be confirmed, though a glitch is the leading explanation.

via EarthSky|

#cosmic-ray #curiosity-rover #imaging-artifact

space11 days ago•158 min saved

Mars Express Captures Fresh 3D View of Schiaparelli Crater on Mars

ESA’s Mars Express captured new, low-altitude imagery of Schiaparelli Crater — one of Mars’ largest impact craters — using its High Resolution Stereo Camera to collect multi-angle, four-color data and build 3D maps of the southern highlands, highlighting ancient water-formed terrain. The site is also famous as the location where Mark Watney was stranded in The Martian and shares its name with ESA’s 2016 Schiaparelli lander.

via Space|

#esa #high-resolution-stereo-camera #mars

space12 days ago•9 min saved

NASA Tests Lightweight Foldable Radar for Mars SkyFall Helicopters

NASA's JPL is testing a downscaled, foldable ground-penetrating radar antenna (based on the Vivaldi design) to fit between the SkyFall helicopter's landing legs and withstand simulated Mars landings and temperature swings, as part of the 2028 SkyFall concept to autonomously search for resources on Mars.

via Hackaday|

#antennas #mars #nasa