NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #1

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-05-23

This artist's concept depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover on the surface of Mars. The mission takes the next step by not only seeking signs of habitable conditions on Mars in the ancient past, but also searching for signs of past microbial life itself. The Mars 2020 rover introduces a drill that can collect core samples of the most promising rocks and soils and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V 541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21635

The Mars Express/NASA Project at JPL

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, Thomas W.; Horttor, R. L.; Acton, C. H., Jr.; Zamani, P.; Johnson, W. T. K.; Plaut, J. J.; Holmes, D. P.; No, S.; Asmar, S. W.; Goltz, G.

2005-01-01

An overview of the Mars Express/NASA Project at JPL is presented. The topics include: 1) Mars Express Mission Experiments and Investigators; 2) Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Soundig (MARSIS) Overview; 3) MARSIS Experiment Overview; 4) Interoperability Concept; 5) Mars Express Science Operations; 6) Mars Express Schedule (2003-2007);

Test Image of Earth Rocks by Mars Camera Stereo

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-11-16

This stereo view of terrestrial rocks combines two images taken by a testing twin of the Mars Hand Lens Imager MAHLI camera on NASA Mars Science Laboratory. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image.

Technology Development for NASA Mars Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hayati, Samad

2005-01-01

A viewgraph presentation on technology development for NASA Mars Missions is shown. The topics include: 1) Mars mission roadmaps; 2) Focus and Base Technology programs; 3) Technology Infusion; and 4) Feed Forward to Future Missions.

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

The Mars Express/NASA Project at JPL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, T. W.; Horttor, R. L.; Acton, C. H., Jr.; Zamani, P.; Johnson, W. T. K.; Plaut, J. J.; Holmes, D. P.; No, S.; Asmar, S.; Goltz, G.

2006-03-01

The Mars Express/NASA Project at JPL supports much of the U.S. involvement in ESA's Mars Express mission. Mars Express has just completed its prime mission in late 2005 and has embarked on its first extended mission cycle.

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Robert Lightfoot, NASA Associate Adminstrator, delivers closing remarks at an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Large Parachute for NASA Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-04-22

The parachute for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission opens to a diameter of nearly 16 meters 51 feet. This image shows a duplicate qualification-test parachute inside the world's largest wind tunnel, at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. The Mars Science Laboratory will be launched in 2011 for a landing on Mars in 2012. Its parachute is the largest ever built to fly on an extraterrestrial mission. The parachute uses a configuration called disk-gap-band, with 80 suspension lines. Most of the orange and white fabric is nylon, though a small disk of heavier polyester is used near the vent in the apex of the canopy due to higher stresses there. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA11994

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Sam Scimemi, Director of NASA's International Space Station Division, speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

David Miller, NASA Chief Technologist, participate in a panel discussion during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

John Grunsfeld, NASA Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate, speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Jason Crusan, Director of NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division, speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

William Gerstenmaier, NASA Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations, speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #2

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's rendition depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover studying a Mars rock outrcrop. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22105

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #4

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's concept depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover exploring Mars. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22107

MarCOs Cruise in Deep Space

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-29

An artist's rendering of the twin Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft as they fly through deep space. The MarCOs will be the first CubeSats -- a kind of modular, mini-satellite -- attempting to fly to another planet. They're designed to fly along behind NASA's InSight lander on its cruise to Mars. If they make the journey, they will test a relay of data about InSight's entry, descent and landing back to Earth. Though InSight's mission will not depend on the success of the MarCOs, they will be a test of how CubeSats can be used in deep space. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22314

Sunset over Twin Peaks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

This image was taken by the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) about one minute after sunset on Mars on Sol 21. The prominent hills dubbed 'Twin Peaks' form a dark silhouette at the horizon, while the setting sun casts a pink glow over the darkening sky. The image was taken as part of a twilight study which indicates how the brightness of the sky fades with time after sunset. Scientists found that the sky stays bright for up to two hours after sunset, indicating that Martian dust extends very high into the atmosphere.

Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is an operating division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Ellen Stofan, NASA Chief Scientist, left, and David Miller, NASA Chief Technologist, right, participate in a panel discussion during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

MarCO and Dispenser

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-19

One of the MarCO CubeSats inside a cleanroom at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, before being placed into its deployment box. The deployment box will eject the briefcase-sized CubeSat into space after launch. It and its twin will accompany the InSight Mars lander when it lifts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in May. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22322

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Randy Lillard, Program Executive for Technology Demonstration Missions of NASA's Space Technology Mission DIrectorate, speaks during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Computer-Design Drawing for NASA 2020 Mars Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-07-15

NASA's 2020 Mars rover mission will go to a region of Mars thought to have offered favorable conditions long ago for microbial life, and the rover will search for signs of past life there. It will also collect and cache samples for potential return to Earth, for many types of laboratory analysis. As a pioneering step toward how humans on Mars will use the Red Planet's natural resources, the rover will extract oxygen from the Martian atmosphere. This 2016 image comes from computer-assisted-design work on the 2020 rover. The design leverages many successful features of NASA's Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars in 2012, but it adds new science instruments and a sampling system to carry out the new goals for the mission. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20759

NASA Mars Science Laboratory Rover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olson, Tim

2017-01-01

Since August 2012, the NASA Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover Curiosity has been operating on the Martian surface. The primary goal of the MSL mission is to assess whether Mars ever had an environment suitable for life. MSL Science Team member Dr. Tim Olson will provide an overview of the rover's capabilities and the major findings from the mission so far. He will also share some of his experiences of what it is like to operate Curiosity's science cameras and explore Mars as part of a large team of scientists and engineers.

'Biracial'-Looking Twins: A New Twin Type?/Twin Research: Twins with Cystic Teratomas; Sleep Quality and Body Mass Index; Previable Membrane Rupture/Print and Online Reports: Twins Born to a Sister Surrogate; NASA Twin Study; African-Cosmopolitan Twin Fashion Inspirations; Triplet Hockey Stars.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2017-06-01

Dizygotic (DZ) co-twins born to mothers and fathers from different racial or ethnic backgrounds often resemble one parent much more than the other. As such, these pairs comprise a unique subset of twins for investigating how others' responses to their different looks may affect their personalities and self-esteem. This article describes some of these twin pairs and some challenges of raising them, and suggests ways they may be used in research. Next, recent twin research on cystic teratomas, relations between sleep quality and body mass index, and previable membrane rupture is described. The final section concerns twins, twin studies, and related events in the media, namely: twins born to a sister surrogate, the NASA twin investigation, inspiring African-Cosmopolitan twins in fashion, and triplet Hockey Stars.

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #7

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

NASA's Mars 2020 rover looks at the horizon in this artist's concept. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22110

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #6

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's rendition depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover studying its surroundings. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22109

NASA Ames Celebrates Curiosity Rover's Landing on Mars (Reporter Package)

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-08

Nearly 7,000 people came to NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., to watch the Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity land on Mars. A full day's worth of activities and discussions with local Mars experts informed attendees about the contributions NASA Ames made to the mission. The highlight of the event was the live NASA TV broadcast of MSL's entry, descent and landing on the Martian surface.

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Randy Lillard, Program Executive for Technology Demonstration Missions of NASA's Space Technology Mission DIrectorate, speaks about the upcoming Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator demonstration during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Interplanetary CubeSat for Technology Demonstration at Mars Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-12

NASA's two MarCO CubeSats will be flying past Mars in September 2016 just as NASA's next Mars lander, InSight, is descending through the Martian atmosphere and landing on the surface. MarCO, for Mars Cube One, will provide an experimental communications relay to inform Earth quickly about the landing. This illustration depicts a moment during the lander's descent when it is transmitting data in the UHF radio band, and the twin MarCO craft are receiving those transmissions while simultaneously relaying the data to Earth in a different radio band. Each of the MarCO twins carries two solar panels for power, and both UHF-band and X-band radio antennas. As a technology demonstration, MarCO could lead to other "bring-your-own-relay" mission designs and also to use of miniature spacecraft for a wide diversity of interplanetary missions. MarCO is the first interplanetary use of CubeSat technologies for small spacecraft. CubeSats are a class of spacecraft based on a standardized small size and modular use of off-the-shelf technologies to streamline development. Many have been made by university students, and dozens have been launched into Earth orbit using extra payload mass available on launches of larger spacecraft. The two briefcase-size MarCO CubeSats will ride along with InSight on an Atlas V launch vehicle lifting off in March 2016 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. MarCO is a technology demonstration aspect of the InSight mission and not needed for that mission's success. InSight, an acronym for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, will investigate the deep interior of Mars to advance understanding of how rocky planets, including Earth, formed and evolved. After launch, the MarCO twins and InSight will be navigated separately to Mars. Note: After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to suspend the planned March 2016 launch of the Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations Geodesy and Heat Transport

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #5

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's concept shows a close-up of NASA's Mars 2020 rover studying an outcrop. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22108

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #3

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's rendition depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover studying rocks with its robotic arm. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22106

North Twin Peak in super resolution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

This pair of images shows the result of taking a sequence of 25 identical exposures from the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) of the northern Twin Peak, with small camera motions, and processing them with the Super-Resolution algorithm developed at NASA's Ames Research Center.

The upper image is a representative input image, scaled up by a factor of five, with the pixel edges smoothed out for a fair comparison. The lower image allows significantly finer detail to be resolved.

Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is an operating division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.

The super-resolution research was conducted by Peter Cheeseman, Bob Kanefsky, Robin Hanson, and John Stutz of NASA's Ames Research Center, Mountain View, CA. More information on this technology is available on the Ames Super Resolution home page at

http://ic-www.arc.nasa.gov/ic/projects/bayes-group/ group/super-res/

The Mars Express/NASA Project at JPL

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, T. W.; Horttor, R. L.; Acton, C. H., Jr.; Zamani, P.; Johnson, W. T. K.; Plaut, J. J.; Holmes, D. P.; No, S.; Asmar, S.; Goltz, G.

2005-01-01

ESA s Mars Express Mission involves international collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European space agencies with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as a junior partner. The primary objective of this mission is to search for hydrologic resources on the surface of Mars. Mars Express was launched from Baikonur, Kazakhstan on June 2, 2003 and arrived at Mars on December 25, 2003. Orbital science observations started in January 2004.

The NASA environmental models of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaplan, D. I.

1991-01-01

NASA environmental models are discussed with particular attention given to the Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Mars-GRAM) and the Mars Terrain simulator. The Mars-GRAM model takes into account seasonal, diurnal, and surface topography and dust storm effects upon the atmosphere. It is also capable of simulating appropriate random density perturbations along any trajectory path through the atmosphere. The Mars Terrain Simulator is a software program that builds pseudo-Martian terrains by layering the effects of geological processes upon one another. Output pictures of the constructed surfaces can be viewed from any vantage point under any illumination conditions. Attention is also given to the document 'Environment of Mars, 1988' in which scientific models of the Martian atmosphere and Martian surface are presented.

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Artist's Concept #1 (Updated)

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-11-17

This artist's concept depicts NASA's Mars 2020 rover exploring Mars. The mission will not only seek out and study an area likely to have been habitable in the distant past, but it will take the next, bold step in robotic exploration of the Red Planet by seeking signs of past microbial life itself. Mars 2020 will use powerful instruments to investigate rocks on Mars down to the microscopic scale of variations in texture and composition. It will also acquire and store samples of the most promising rocks and soils that it encounters, and set them aside on the surface of Mars. A future mission could potentially return these samples to Earth. Mars 2020 is targeted for launch in July/August 2020 aboard an Atlas V-541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22111

Sunset over "Twin Peaks"

NASA Image and Video Library

1997-08-06

This image was taken by the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) about one minute after sunset on Mars on Sol 21. The prominent hills dubbed "Twin Peaks" form a dark silhouette at the horizon, while the setting sun casts a pink glow over the darkening sky. The image was taken as part of a twilight study which indicates how the brightness of the sky fades with time after sunset. Scientists found that the sky stays bright for up to two hours after sunset, indicating that Martian dust extends very high into the atmosphere. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00783

NASA Facts, Mars as a Planet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

Presented is one of a series of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facts about the exploration of Mars. Photographs, showing Mars as seen from Earth through a telescope, show dark markings and polar caps present. Photographs from Mariner 7, Mariner 4, and Mariner 9 are included. Presented is a composite of several Mariner 9…

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Sam Scimemi, Director of NASA's International Space Station Division, left, Phil McAlister, Director of NASA's Commercial Spaceflight Division, second from left, Dan Dumbacher, Deputy Associate Administrator of NASA's Exploration Systems Development, center, Michele Gates, Senior Technical Advisor of NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, second from right, and Jason Crusan, Director of NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division, right, sit on a panel during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Distant Perspective of MarCOs Cruise in Deep Space

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-29

An artist's rendering of the twin Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft on their cruise in deep space. The MarCOs will be the first CubeSats -- a kind of modular, mini-satellite -- attempting to fly to another planet. They're designed to fly along behind NASA's InSight lander on its cruise to Mars. If they make the journey, they will test a relay of data about InSight's entry, descent and landing back to Earth. Though InSight's mission will not depend on the success of the MarCOs, they will be a test of how CubeSats can be used in deep space. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22315

NASA's new Mars Exploration Program: the trajectory of knowledge.

PubMed

Garvin, J B; Figueroa, O; Naderi, F M

2001-01-01

NASA's newly restructured Mars Exploration Program (MEP) is finally on the way to Mars with the successful April 7 launch of the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter. In addition, the announcement by the Bush Administration that the exploration of Mars will be a priority within NASA's Office of Space Science further cements the first decade of the new millennium as one of the major thrusts to understand the "new" Mars. Over the course of the past year and a half, an integrated team of managers, scientists, and engineers has crafted a revamped MEP to respond to the scientific as well as management and resource challenges associated with deep space exploration of the Red Planet. This article describes the new program from the perspective of its guiding philosophies, major events, and scientific strategy. It is intended to serve as a roadmap to the next 10-15 years of Mars exploration from the NASA viewpoint. [For further details, see the Mars Exploration Program web site (URL): http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov]. The new MEP will certainly evolve in response to discoveries, to successes, and potentially to setbacks as well. However, the design of the restructured strategy is attentive to risks, and a major attempt to instill resiliency in the program has been adopted. Mars beckons, and the next decade of exploration should provide the impetus for a follow-on decade in which multiple sample returns and other major program directions are executed. Ultimately the vision to consider the first human scientific expeditions to the Red Planet will be enabled. By the end of the first decade of this program, we may know where and how to look for the elusive clues associated with a possible martian biological record, if any was every preserved, even if only as "chemical fossils."

NASA's new Mars Exploration Program: the trajectory of knowledge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garvin, J. B.; Figueroa, O.; Naderi, F. M.

2001-01-01

NASA's newly restructured Mars Exploration Program (MEP) is finally on the way to Mars with the successful April 7 launch of the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter. In addition, the announcement by the Bush Administration that the exploration of Mars will be a priority within NASA's Office of Space Science further cements the first decade of the new millennium as one of the major thrusts to understand the "new" Mars. Over the course of the past year and a half, an integrated team of managers, scientists, and engineers has crafted a revamped MEP to respond to the scientific as well as management and resource challenges associated with deep space exploration of the Red Planet. This article describes the new program from the perspective of its guiding philosophies, major events, and scientific strategy. It is intended to serve as a roadmap to the next 10-15 years of Mars exploration from the NASA viewpoint. [For further details, see the Mars Exploration Program web site (URL): http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov]. The new MEP will certainly evolve in response to discoveries, to successes, and potentially to setbacks as well. However, the design of the restructured strategy is attentive to risks, and a major attempt to instill resiliency in the program has been adopted. Mars beckons, and the next decade of exploration should provide the impetus for a follow-on decade in which multiple sample returns and other major program directions are executed. Ultimately the vision to consider the first human scientific expeditions to the Red Planet will be enabled. By the end of the first decade of this program, we may know where and how to look for the elusive clues associated with a possible martian biological record, if any was every preserved, even if only as "chemical fossils.".

NASA's New Mars Exploration Program: The Trajectory of Knowledge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garvin, James B.; Figueroa, Orlando; Naderi, Firouz M.

2001-12-01

NASA's newly restructured Mars Exploration Program (MEP) is finally on the way to Mars with the successful April 7 launch of the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter. In addition, the announcement by the Bush Administration that the exploration of Mars will be a priority within NASA's Office of Space Science further cements the first decade of the new millennium as one of the major thrusts to understand the "new" Mars. Over the course of the past year and a half, an integrated team of managers, scientists, and engineers has crafted a revamped MEP to respond to the scientific as well as management and resource challenges associated with deep space exploration of the Red Planet. This article describes the new program from the perspective of its guiding philosophies, major events, and scientific strategy. It is intended to serve as a roadmap to the next 10-15 years of Mars exploration from the NASA viewpoint. [For further details, see the Mars Exploration Program web site (URL): http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov]. The new MEP will certainly evolve in response to discoveries, to successes, and potentially to setbacks as well. However, the design of the restructured strategy is attentive to risks, and a major attempt to instill resiliency in the program has been adopted. Mars beckons, and the next decade of exploration should provide the impetus for a follow-on decade in which multiple sample returns and other major program directions are executed. Ultimately the vision to consider the first human scientific expeditions to the Red Planet will be enabled. By the end of the first decade of this program, we may know where and how to look for the elusive clues associated with a possible martian biological record, if any was every preserved, even if only as "chemical fossils."

West Rim of Endeavour Crater on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-08-10

A portion of the west rim of Endeavour crater sweeps southward in this color view from NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. The rover first destination on the rim, called Spirit Point in tribute to Opportunity now-inactive twin, Spirit.

Development of a NASA 2018 Mars Landed Mission Concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, M. G.; Salvo, C. G.; Abilleira, F.; Sengstacken, A. J.; Allwood, A. G.; Backes, P. G.; Lindemann, R. A.; Jordan, J. F.

2010-01-01

Fundamental to NASA's Mars Exploration Program (MEP) is an ongoing development of an integrated and coordinated set of possible future candidate missions that meet fundamental science and programmatic objectives of NASA and the Mars scientific community. In the current planning horizon of the NASA MEP, a landed mobile surface exploration mission launching in the 2018 Mars launch opportunity exists as a candidate project to meet MEP in situ science and exploration objectives. This paper describes the proposed mission science objectives and the mission implementation concept developed for the 2018 opportunity. As currently envisioned, this mission concept seeks to explore a yet-to-be-selected site with high preservation potential for physical and chemical biosignatures, evaluate paleoenvironmental conditions, characterize the potential for preservation of biosignatures, and access multiple sequences of geological units in a search for evidence of past life and/or prebiotic chemistry at a site on Mars.

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-29

Sam Scimemi, Director of NASA's International Space Station Division, second from left, Phil McAlister, Director of NASA's Commercial Spaceflight Division, third from left, Dan Dumbacher, Deputy Associate Administrator of NASA's Exploration Systems Development, center, Michele Gates, Senior Technical Advisor of NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, second from right, and Jason Crusan, Director of NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division, right, sit on a panel during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Science Instruments on NASA Mars 2020 Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-10

This 2015 diagram shows components of the investigations payload for NASA's Mars 2020 rover mission. Mars 2020 will re-use the basic engineering of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory to send a different rover to Mars, with new objectives and instruments, launching in 2020. The rover will carry seven instruments to conduct its science and exploration technology investigations. They are: Mastcam-Z, an advanced camera system with panoramic and stereoscopic imaging capability and the ability to zoom. The instrument also will determine mineralogy of the Martian surface and assist with rover operations. The principal investigator is James Bell, Arizona State University in Tempe. SuperCam, an instrument that can provide imaging, chemical composition analysis, and mineralogy. The instrument will also be able to detect the presence of organic compounds in rocks and regolith from a distance. The principal investigator is Roger Wiens, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico. This instrument also has a significant contribution from the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie (CNES/IRAP) France. Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL), an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer that will also contain an imager with high resolution to determine the fine-scale elemental composition of Martian surface materials. PIXL will provide capabilities that permit more detailed detection and analysis of chemical elements than ever before. The principal investigator is Abigail Allwood, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California. Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC), a spectrometer that will provide fine-scale imaging and uses an ultraviolet (UV) laser to determine fine-scale mineralogy and detect organic compounds. SHERLOC will be the first UV Raman spectrometer to fly to the surface of Mars and will provide complementary measurements with other

Explore Mars from the NASA Website

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhaoyao, Meng

2005-01-01

Here we show how to explore Mars based on data obtainable from the NASA website. The analysis and calculations of some physics questions provide interesting and useful examples of inquiry-based learning.

Arm and Mast of NASA Mars Rover Curiosity

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-04-06

The arm and the remote sensing mast of the Mars rover Curiosity each carry science instruments and other tools for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission. This image shows the arm on the left and the mast just right of center.

PA-30 Twin Comanche - NASA 808 in flight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

Dryden Flight Research Center's Piper PA-30 Twin Commanche, which helped validate the RPRV concept, descends to a remotely controlled landing on Rogers Dry Lake, unassisted by the onboard pilot. A Piper PA-30 Twin Commanche, known as NASA 808, was used at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center as a rugged workhorse in a variety of research projects associated with both general aviation and military projects. In the early 1970s, the PA-30, serial number 301498, was used to test a flight technique used to fly Remotely Piloted Research Vehicles (RPRV's). The technique was first tested with the cockpit windows of the light aircraft blacked out while the pilot flew the aircraft utilizing a television monitor which gave him a 'pilot's eye' view ahead of the aircraft. Later pilots flew the aircraft from a ground cockpit, a procedure used with all RPRV's. TV and two-way telemetry allow the pilot to be in constant control of the aircraft. The apparatus mounted over the cockpit is a special fish eye lens camera, used to obtain images that are transmitted to the ground based cockpit. This project paved the way for sophisticated, highly successful research programs involving high risk spin, stall, and flight control conditions, such as the HiMAT and the subscale F-15 remotely piloted vehicles. Over the years, NASA 808 has also been used for spin and stall research related to general aviation aircraft and also research to alleviate wake vortices behind large jetliners.

PA-30 Twin Comanche - NASA 808 in flight

NASA Image and Video Library

1971-10-08

Dryden Flight Research Center's Piper PA-30 Twin Commanche, which helped validate the RPRV concept, descends to a remotely controlled landing on Rogers Dry Lake, unassisted by the onboard pilot. A Piper PA-30 Twin Commanche, known as NASA 808, was used at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center as a rugged workhorse in a variety of research projects associated with both general aviation and military projects. In the early 1970s, the PA-30, serial number 301498, was used to test a flight technique used to fly Remotely Piloted Research Vehicles (RPRV's). The technique was first tested with the cockpit windows of the light aircraft blacked out while the pilot flew the aircraft utilizing a television monitor which gave him a "pilot's eye" view ahead of the aircraft. Later pilots flew the aircraft from a ground cockpit, a procedure used with all RPRV's. TV and two-way telemetry allow the pilot to be in constant control of the aircraft. The apparatus mounted over the cockpit is a special fish eye lens camera, used to obtain images that are transmitted to the ground based cockpit. This project paved the way for sophisticated, highly successful research programs involving high risk spin, stall, and flight control conditions, such as the HiMAT and the subscale F-15 remotely piloted vehicles. Over the years, NASA 808 has also been used for spin and stall research related to general aviation aircraft and also research to alleviate wake vortices behind large jetliners.

MarCO CubeSat Model

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-01-20

Joel Steinkraus, lead mechanical engineer for the MarCO (Mars Cube One) CubeSat spacecraft, adjusts a model of one of the two spacecraft. The mock-up in the photo is in a configuration to show the deployed position of components that correspond to MarCO's two solar panels and two antennas. During launch, those components will be stowed for a total vehicle size of about 14.4 inches (36.6 centimeters) by 9.5 inches (24.3 centimeters) by 4.6 inches (11.8 centimeters). The briefcase-size MarCO twins were designed to ride along with NASA's next Mars lander, InSight. Its planned March 2016 launch was suspended. InSight -- an acronym for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport -- will study the interior of Mars to improve understanding of the processes that formed and shaped rocky planets, including Earth. Note: After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to suspend the planned March 2016 launch of the Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission. The decision follows unsuccessful attempts to repair a leak in a section of the prime instrument in the science payload. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20344

NASA Facts, Mars and Earth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

Presented is one of a series of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facts about the exploration of Mars. In this publication, emphasis is placed on the sun's planetary system with note made that there is no one theory for the origin and subsequent evolution of the Solar System that is generally accepted. Ideas from many scientists…

The supercam instrument on the NASA Mars 2020 mission: optical design and performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perez, R.; Parès, Laurent P.; Newell, R.; Robinson, S.; Bernardi, P.; Réess, J.-M.; Caïs, Ph.; McCabe, K.; Maurice, S.; Wiens, R. C.

2017-09-01

NASA is developing the MARS 2020 mission, which includes a rover that will land and operate on the surface of Mars. MARS 2020, scheduled for launch in July, 2020, is designed to conduct an assessment of Mars' past habitability, search for potential biosignatures, demonstrate progress toward the future return of samples to Earth, and contribute to NASA's Human Exploration and Space Technology Programs.

NASA/Haughton-Mars Project 2006 Lunar Medical Contingency Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scheuring, Richard A.; Jones, J. A.; Lee, P.; Comtois, J. M.; Chappell, S.; Rafiq, A.; Braham, S.

2007-01-01

A viewgraph presentation describing NASA's Haughton-Mars Project (HMP) medical requirements and lunar surface operations is shown. The topics onclude: 1) Mission Purpose/ Overview; 2) HMP as a Moon/Mars Analog; 3) Simulation objectives; 4) Discussion; and 5) Forward work.

Tenth Anniversary Image from Camera on NASA Mars Orbiter

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-02-29

NASA Mars Odyssey spacecraft captured this image on Feb. 19, 2012, 10 years to the day after the camera recorded its first view of Mars. This image covers an area in the Nepenthes Mensae region north of the Martian equator.

NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) Program: Mars Program Utilization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

May, Todd A.; Creech, Stephen D.

2012-01-01

NASA's Space Launch System is being designed for safe, affordable, and sustainable human and scientific exploration missions beyond Earth's orbit (BEO), as directed by the NASA Authorization Act of 2010 and NASA's 2011 Strategic Plan. This paper describes how the SLS can dramatically change the Mars program's science and human exploration capabilities and objectives. Specifically, through its high-velocity change (delta V) and payload capabilities, SLS enables Mars science missions of unprecedented size and scope. By providing direct trajectories to Mars, SLS eliminates the need for complicated gravity-assist missions around other bodies in the solar system, reducing mission time, complexity, and cost. SLS's large payload capacity also allows for larger, more capable spacecraft or landers with more instruments, which can eliminate the need for complex packaging or "folding" mechanisms. By offering this capability, SLS can enable more science to be done more quickly than would be possible through other delivery mechanisms using longer mission times.

NASA Mars 2020 Rover Mission: New Frontiers in Science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos I.

2014-01-01

The Mars 2020 rover mission is the next step in NASAs robotic exploration of the red planet. The rover, based on the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover now on Mars, will address key questions about the potential for life on Mars. The mission would also provide opportunities to gather knowledge and demonstrate technologies that address the challenges of future human expeditions to Mars.Like the Mars Science Laboratory rover, which has been exploring Mars since 2012, the Mars 2020 spacecraft will use a guided entry, descent, and landing system which includes a parachute, descent vehicle, and, during the provides the ability to land a very large, heavy rover on the surface of Mars in a more precise landing area. The Mars 2020 mission is designed to accomplish several high-priority planetary science goals and will be an important step toward meeting NASAs challenge to send humans to Mars in the 2030s. The mission will conduct geological assessments of the rover's landing site, determine the habitability of the environment, search for signs of ancient Martian life, and assess natural resources and hazards for future human explorers. The science instruments aboard the rover also will enable scientists to identify and select a collection of rock and soil samples that will be stored for potential return to Earth in the future. The rover also may help designers of a human expedition understand the hazards posed by Martian dust and demonstrate how to collect carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which could be a valuable resource for producing oxygen and rocket fuel.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) undergoes a weight and center of gravity determination in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) undergoes a weight and center of gravity determination in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility prepare the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) for a weight and center of gravity determination. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility prepare the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) for a weight and center of gravity determination. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Ablative Heat Shield Studies for NASA Mars/Earth Return Entry Vehicles

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-01

RETURN ENTRY VEHICLES by Michael K. Hamm September, 1990 NASA Thesis Advisor: William D. Henline Thesis Co-Advisor: Max F. Platzer Approved for public...STUDIES FOR NASA MARS/EARTH RETURN ENTRY VEHICLES (UNCLASSIFIED) 12. PERSONAL AUTHOR(S) Harm, Michael, K. 13a TYPE OF REPORT 13b TIME COVERED 14 DATE OF...theoretical values. The tests were performed to ascertain if RSI type materials could be used for entry vehicles proposed in NASA Mars missions. 20

NASA's strategy for Mars exploration in the 1990s and beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huntress, W. T.; Feeley, T. J.; Boyce, J. M.

NASA's Office of Space Science is changing its approach to all its missions, both current and future. Budget realities are necessitating that we change the way we do business and the way we look at NASA's role in the U.S. Government. These challenges are being met by a new and innovative approach that focuses on achieving a balanced world-class space science program that requires less U.S. resources while providing an enhanced role for technology and education as integral components of our Research and Development (R&D) programs. Our Mars exploration plans, especially the Mars Surveyor program, are a key feature of this new NASA approach to space science. The Mars Surveyor program will be affordable, engaging to the public with global and close-up images of Mars, have high scientific value, employ a distributed risk strategy (two launches per opportunity), and will use significant advanced technologies.

Solar Power on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2005-01-01

This chart illustrates the variation in available solar power for each of NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers over the course of approximately two Mars years. Two factors affect the amount of available power: the tilt of Mars' axis and the eccentricity of the Mars' orbit about the sun.

The horizontal scale is the number of Martian days (sols) after the Jan. 4, 2004, (Universal Time) landing of Spirit at Mars' Gusev Crater. The vertical scale on the right indicates the amount of available solar power as a ratio of the amount available at the equator when Mars is closest to the sun (perihelion). The red line indicates power availability at Spirit's landing site (Gusev). The blue line indicates power availability at Opportunity's landing site (Meridiani).

The vertical scale on the right applies to the dotted line, indicating the latitude north or south of Mars' equator where the noon sun is overhead at different times of the Martian year.

Artist Rendering of NASA Dawn Spacecraft Approaching Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-05-23

Artist rendering of NASA's Dawn spacecraft approaching Mars. Dawn, part of NASA's Discovery Program of competitively selected missions, was launched in 2007 to orbit the large asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. The two bodies have very different properties from each other. By observing them both with the same set of instruments, Dawn will probe the early solar system and specify the properties of each body. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA18152

Journey to Mars Update on This Week @NASA – September 30, 2016

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-30

NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden joined other leaders of the world’s space agencies to discuss the latest technological breakthroughs and developments in space exploration at the 67th International Astronautical Congress, Sept. 26-30th in Guadalajara, Mexico. At the event, NASA discussed new elements to its multi-phase Journey to Mars to extend the human footprint all the way to the Red Planet. NASA will continue operations aboard the International Space Station through 2024. Work currently underway aboard the station to encourage commercial development of low-Earth orbit, develop deep space systems, life support and human health is part of the Earth Reliant phase of the Journey to Mars. In the 2020s, during the Proving Ground phase when NASA steps out farther, the agency now plans to send an astronaut crew on a yearlong mission to a deep space destination near the moon. They will conduct activities to verify habitation and test our readiness for Mars. A round-trip robotic Mars sample return mission is being targeted for the 2020s, as part of the Earth Independent phase before finally sending humans on a mission to orbit Mars in the early 2030s. Also, Zurbuchen Named Head of NASA Science, Hubble Spots Possible Water Plumes on Europa, Rosetta’s Mission Ends, and Armstrong Celebrates 70 Years of Flight Research!

Strengthening the Mars Telecommunications Network

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-11-29

On Nov. 22, 2016, a NASA radio aboard the European Space Agency's (ESA's) Trace Gas Orbiter, which arrived at Mars the previous month, succeeded in its first test of receiving data transmitted from NASA Mars rovers, both Opportunity and Curiosity. This graphic depicts the geometry of Opportunity transmitting data to the orbiter, using the ultra-high frequency (UHF) band of radio wavelengths. The orbiter received that data using one of its twin Electra UHF-band radios. Data that the orbiter's Electra received from the two rovers was subsequently transmitted from the orbiter to Earth, using the orbiter's main X-band radio. The Trace Gas Orbiter is part of ESA's ExoMars program. During the initial months after its Oct. 19, 2016, arrival, it is flying in a highly elliptical orbit. Each loop takes 4.2 days to complete, with distances between the orbiter and the planet's surface ranging from about 60,000 miles (about 100,000 kilometers) to less than 200 miles (less than 310 kilometers). Later, the mission will reshape the orbit to a near-circular path about 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the surface of Mars. Three NASA orbiters and one other ESA orbiter currently at Mars also have relayed data from Mars rovers to Earth. This strategy enables receiving much more data from the surface missions than would be possible with a direct-to-Earth radio link from rovers or stationary landers. Successful demonstration of the capability added by the Trace Gas Orbiter strengthens and extends the telecommunications network at Mars for supporting future missions to the surface of the Red Planet. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21139

Mid-2017 Map of NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover Mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-11

This map shows the route driven by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover, from the location where it landed in August 2012 to its location in July 2017, and its planned path to additional geological layers of lower Mount Sharp. The blue star near top center marks "Bradbury Landing," the site where Curiosity arrived on Mars on Aug. 5, 2012, PDT (Aug. 6, EDT and Universal Time). Blue triangles mark waypoints investigated by Curiosity on the floor of Gale Crater and, starting with "Pahrump Hills," on Mount Sharp. The Sol 1750 label identifies the rover's location on July 9, 2017, the 1,750th Martian day, or sol, since the landing. In July 2017, the mission is examining "Vera Rubin Ridge" from the downhill side of the ridge. Spectrometry observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have detected hematite, an iron-oxide mineral, in the ridge. Curiosity's planned route continues to the top of the ridge and then to geological units where clay minerals and sulfate minerals have been detected from orbit. The base image for the map is from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. North is up. "Bagnold Dunes" form a band of dark, wind-blown material at the foot of Mount Sharp. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21720

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Assembly of the backshell and heat shield surrounding the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is complete. The resulting aeroshell will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-15

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Assembly of the backshell and heat shield surrounding the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is complete. The resulting aeroshell will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Today - Mars Observer Segment (Part 4 of 6)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1993-01-01

This videotape consists of eight segments from the NASA Today News program. The first segment is an announcement that there was no date set for the launch of STS-51, which had been postponed due to mechanical problems. The second segment describes the MidDeck Dynamic Experiment Facility. The third segment is about the scheduled arrival of the Mars Observer at Mars, it shows an image of Mars as seen from the approaching Observer spacecraft, and features an animation of the approach to Mars, including the maneuvers that are planned to put the spacecraft in the desired orbit. The fourth segment describes a discovery from an infrared spectrometer that there is nitrogen ice on Pluto. The fifth segment discusses the Aerospace for Kids (ASK) program at the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The sixth segment is about the high school and college summer internship programs at GSFC. The seventh segment announces a science symposium being held at Johnson Space Center. The last segment describes the National Air and Space Museum and NASA's cooperation with the Smithsonian Institution.

The NASA Langley Mars Tumbleweed Rover Prototype

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Antol, Jeffrey; Chattin, Richard L.; Copeland, Benjamin M.; Krizann, Shawn A.

2005-01-01

Mars Tumbleweed is a concept for an autonomous rover that would achieve mobility through use of the natural winds on Mars. The wind-blown nature of this vehicle make it an ideal platform for conducting random surveys of the surface, scouting for signs of past or present life as well as examining the potential habitability of sites for future human exploration. NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has been studying the dynamics, aerodynamics, and mission concepts of Tumbleweed rovers and has recently developed a prototype Mars Tumbleweed Rover for demonstrating mission concepts and science measurement techniques. This paper will provide an overview of the prototype design, instrumentation to be accommodated, preliminary test results, and plans for future development and testing of the vehicle.

The Collaborative Information Portal and NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mak, Ronald; Walton, Joan

2005-01-01

The Collaborative Information Portal was enterprise software developed jointly by the NASA Ames Research Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission. Mission managers, engineers, scientists, and researchers used this Internet application to view current staffing and event schedules, download data and image files generated by the rovers, receive broadcast messages, and get accurate times in various Mars and Earth time zones. This article describes the features, architecture, and implementation of this software, and concludes with lessons we learned from its deployment and a look towards future missions.

Optimizing Mars Sphere of Influence Maneuvers for NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Merrill, Raymond G.; Komar, D. R.; Chai, Patrick; Qu, Min

2016-01-01

NASA's Human Spaceflight Architecture Team is refining human exploration architectures that will extend human presence to the Martian surface. For both Mars orbital and surface missions, NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign assumes that cargo and crew can be delivered repeatedly to the same destination. Up to this point, interplanetary trajectories have been optimized to minimize the total propulsive requirements of the in-space transportation systems, while the pre-deployed assets and surface systems are optimized to minimize their respective propulsive requirements separate from the in-space transportation system. There is a need to investigate the coupled problem of optimizing the interplanetary trajectory and optimizing the maneuvers within Mars's sphere of influence. This paper provides a description of the ongoing method development, analysis and initial results of the effort to resolve the discontinuity between the interplanetary trajectory and the Mars sphere of influence trajectories. Assessment of Phobos and Deimos orbital missions shows the in-space transportation and crew taxi allocations are adequate for missions in the 2030s. Because the surface site has yet to be selected, the transportation elements must be sized to provide enough capability to provide surface access to all landing sites under consideration. Analysis shows access to sites from elliptical parking orbits with a lander that is designed for sub-periapsis landing location is either infeasible or requires expensive orbital maneuvers for many latitude ranges. In this case the locus of potential arrival perigee vectors identifies the potential maximum north or south latitudes accessible. Higher arrival velocities can decrease reorientation costs and increase landing site availability. Utilizing hyperbolic arrival and departure vectors in the optimization scheme will increase transportation site accessibility and provide more optimal solutions.

Advance Inspection of NASA Next Mars Landing Site

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-03-29

This map shows footprints of images taken from Mars orbit by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera as part of advance analysis of the area where NASA's InSight mission will land in 2018. The final planned image of the set is targeted to fill in the yellow-outlined rectangle on March 30, 2017. HiRISE is one of six science instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which reached Mars in 2006 and surpassed 50,000 orbits on March 27, 2017. The map covers an area about 100 miles (160 kilometers) across. HiRISE has been used since 2006 to inspect dozens of candidate landing sites on Mars, including the sites where the Phoenix and Curiosity missions landed in 2008 and 2012. The site selected for InSight's Nov. 26, 2018, landing is on a flat plain in the Elysium Planitia region of Mars, between 4 and 5 degrees north of the equator. HiRISE images are detailed enough to reveal individual boulders big enough to be a landing hazard. The March 30 observation that completes the planned advance imaging of this landing area brings the number of HiRISE images of the area to 73. Some are pairs covering the same ground. Overlapping observations provide stereoscopic, 3-D information for evaluating characteristics such as slopes. On this map, coverage by stereo pairs is coded in pale blue, compared to the gray-green of single HiRISE image footprints. The ellipses on the map are about 81 miles (130 kilometers) west-to-east by about 17 miles (27 kilometers) north-to-south. InSight has about 99 percent odds of landing within the ellipse for which it is targeted. The three ellipses indicate landing expectations for three of the possible InSight launch dates: white outline for launch at the start of the launch period, on May 5, 2018; blue for launch on May 26, 2018; orange for launch on June 8, 2018. InSight -- an acronym for "Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport" -- will study the deep interior of Mars to improve

Hematite ``Blueberry`` Concretion Doublet and Triplets on Mars: Iron Oxide Twin Analogs From Utah

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chan, M. A.; Parry, W. T.; Park, A. S.

2005-12-01

Spherical concretions on Earth and Mars comprise a record of diagenetic history that may not otherwise be preserved in the more common host rock. Hematite spherules of Meridiani Planum show some joined forms of twos and threes. Joined iron oxide concretions making doublets and triplets also occur in the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone of southern Utah, and can serve as an analog to understanding why joined forms occur on Mars. The geometries of in situ Utah examples suggest two processes for creating connected forms. In one concretion growth mechanism, occasional coalescing of single forms may result from the growth of doublets or triplets in overly close proximity (typically less than 15% of a population). Joined concretions of roughly equal sizes can be aligned in a row; unequal size concretions take on the shapes of ``snowmen``, or attached ``satellites``. Where cementation is pervasive, individual concretions may grow and coalesce into a lumpy layer or cemented mass along preferential flow paths or preferential nucleation sites. In the second mechanism, nearly all (more than 75%) of the concretions form doublets that are conjoined. The occurrence of dominant twins indicates that these concretions are not coincidental as in the first mechanism. Dominant twin concretions occur regularly and evenly throughout fairly homogeneous host rock. More unusual twins show additional small twin warts suggesting duplicated nucleation and precipitation. Normally, iron oxide concretion precipitation begins when the oxide saturation reaches a precipitation threshold. Precipitation produces chemical gradients, and competition between reaction and diffusion rates determines the spacing between concretions. These factors in combination with reactant supply, competitive growth phenomena and a complex self-organizing processes may contribute to development of internal structure with varying layers of iron-depleted zones to resistant iron-cemented shells. The pervasive nature of sandstone

PADME (Phobos And Deimos & Mars Environment): A Proposed NASA Discovery Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Pascal

2014-11-01

Ever the since their discovery in 1877 by American astronomer Asaph Hall, the two moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, have been enigmas. Spacecraft missions have revealed irregular-shaped small bodies with different densities, morphologies, and evolutionary histories. Spectral data suggest that they might be akin to D-type asteroids, although compositional interpretations of the spectra are ambiguous. The origin of Phobos and Deimos remains unknown. There are three prevailing hypotheses for their origin: 1) They are captured asteroids, possibly primitive D-type bodies from the outer main belt or beyond; 2) They are reaccreted impact ejecta from Mars; 3) They are remnants of Mars’s formation. Each one of these hypotheses has radically different and important implications regarding the evolution of the solar system, and/or the formation and evolution of planets and satellites, including the delivery of water and organics to the inner solar system. The Phobos And Deimos & Mars Environment (PADME) mission is a proposed NASA Discovery mission that will test these hypotheses, by investigating simultaneously the internal structure of Phobos and Deimos, and the composition and dynamics of their surface and near-surface materials. PADME would launch in 2020 and reach Mars orbit in early 2021. PADME would then begin a series of slow and increasingly close flybys of Phobos first, then of Deimos. PADME would use the proven LADEE spacecraft and mature instrument systems to enable a low-cost and low risk approach to carrying out its investigation. In addition to achieving its scientific objectives, PADME would fill strategic knowledge gaps identified by NASA’s SBAG and HEOMD for planning future, more ambitious robotic landed or sample return missions to Phobos and/or Deimos, and eventual human missions to Mars Orbit. PADME would be built, managed, and operated by NASA Ames Research Center. Partners include the SETI Institute, NASA JPL, NASA GSFC, NASA JSC, NASA KSC, LASP

NASA Software Lets You Explore Mars, the Asteroid Vesta and the Moon

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-06

NASA wants you to use your web browser to explore Mars, the Moon and the asteroid Vesta! The three portals are some of NASA's planetary mapping and modeling web portals. It makes it easy for mission planners, scientists, students and the public to visualize details on the surface of Mars, the Moon and Vesta, as seen with a variety of instruments aboard a number of spacecraft.

The Twins Study: NASA's First Foray into 21st Century Omics Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kundrot, C. E.; Shelhamer, M.; Scott, G. B. I.

2015-01-01

The full array of 21st century omics-based research methods should be intelligently employed to reduce the health and performance risks that astronauts will be exposed to during exploration missions beyond low Earth Orbit. In March of 2015, US Astronaut Scott Kelly will launch to the International Space Station for a one year mission while his twin brother, Mark Kelly, a retired US Astronaut, remains on the ground. This situation presents an extremely rare flight opportunity to perform an integrated omics-based demonstration pilot study involving identical twin astronauts. A group of 10 principal investigators has been competitively selected, funded, and teamed together to form the Twins Study. A very broad range of biological function are being examined including the genome, epigenome, transcriptome, proteome, metabolome, gut microbiome, immunological response to vaccinations, indicators of atherosclerosis, physiological fluid shifts, and cognition. The plans for the Twins Study and an overview of initial results will be described as well as the technological and ethical issues raised for such spaceflight studies. An anticipated outcome of the Twins Study is that it will place NASA on a trajectory of using omics-based information to develop precision countermeasures for individual astronauts.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility are preparing to determine weight and center of gravity for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2). NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-09

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility are preparing to determine weight and center of gravity for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2). NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. Launch of MER-2 is scheduled for June 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

The backshell for the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is moved toward the rover (foreground, left). The backshell is a protective cover for the rover. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-10

The backshell for the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is moved toward the rover (foreground, left). The backshell is a protective cover for the rover. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Facts, Mars as a Member of the Solar System.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

Presented is one of a series of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facts about the exploration of Mars. In this publication, emphasis is placed on the planet Mars as a member of the Solar System and a detailed description is given related to historical accounts of the planet's existence and its travels. The physical…

Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffman, Stephen J.; Kaplan, David I.

1997-07-01

Personnel representing several NASA field centers have formulated a "Reference Mission" addressing human exploration of Mars. This report summarizes their work and describes a plan for the first human missions to Mars, using approaches that are technically feasible, have reasonable risks, and have relatively low costs. The architecture for the Mars Reference Mission builds on previous work of the Synthesis Group (1991) and Zubrin's (1991) concepts for the use of propellants derived from the Martian Atmosphere. In defining the Reference Mission, choices have been made. In this report, the rationale for each choice is documented; however, unanticipated technology advances or political decisions might change the choices in the future.

Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, Stephen J. (Editor); Kaplan, David I. (Editor)

1997-01-01

Personnel representing several NASA field centers have formulated a "Reference Mission" addressing human exploration of Mars. This report summarizes their work and describes a plan for the first human missions to Mars, using approaches that are technically feasible, have reasonable risks, and have relatively low costs. The architecture for the Mars Reference Mission builds on previous work of the Synthesis Group (1991) and Zubrin's (1991) concepts for the use of propellants derived from the Martian Atmosphere. In defining the Reference Mission, choices have been made. In this report, the rationale for each choice is documented; however, unanticipated technology advances or political decisions might change the choices in the future.

NASA Participates in Mars Day Activities at National Air and Space Museum

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-21

NASA participated in the July 21 Mars Day event at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) in Washington, D.C. The museum hosts this annual event, which includes exhibits, speakers and educational activities, to celebrate the Red Planet.    Jim Green, director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division, along with other NASA scientists and engineers, was on hand to talk with visitors about the agency’s Mars exploration missions. There was also a Mars concept rover on display, developed by vehicle designers the Parker Brothers with advice from NASA. The vehicle is currently on an East Coast tour from its home base at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor’s Complex in Florida. The concept rover is designed to engage and educate the public by demonstrating the types of features and equipment a future human exploration vehicle may need.

NASA and NSBRI's Kelly Twins Study: Progress Implementing the First Integrated Omics Pilot Demonstration Study in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scott, Graham B. I.; Charles, John; Kundrot, Craig; Shelhamer, Mark

2016-01-01

This opportunity has emerged from NASA's decision to fly veteran NASA astronaut Scott Kelly aboard the International Space Station (ISS) for a period of one year commencing in March 2015, while his identical twin brother, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, remains on Earth. Scott Kelly, a veteran of two Space Shuttle flights as well as a six-month ISS mission, will have a cumulative duration of 540 days in low Earth orbit at the conclusion of the one-year flight, while Mark Kelly, a veteran of four Space Shuttle flights, has a cumulative duration of 54 days ( 2 hours and 4 minutes) in low Earth orbit. This opportunity originated at the initiative of the twin astronauts themselves

NASA Mars Rover Curiosity at JPL, Side View

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-04-06

The rover for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission, named Curiosity, is about 3 meters 10 feet long, not counting the additional length that the rover arm can be extended forward. The front of the rover is on the left in this side view.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers lower the backshell with the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) onto the heat shield. The two components form the aeroshell that will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-15

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers lower the backshell with the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) onto the heat shield. The two components form the aeroshell that will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers check the attachment between the backshell (above) and heat shield (below) surrounding the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1). The aeroshell will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-15

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers check the attachment between the backshell (above) and heat shield (below) surrounding the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1). The aeroshell will protect the rover on its journey to Mars. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

A concept for NASA's Mars 2016 astrobiology field laboratory.

PubMed

Beegle, Luther W; Wilson, Michael G; Abilleira, Fernando; Jordan, James F; Wilson, Gregory R

2007-08-01

The Mars Program Plan includes an integrated and coordinated set of future candidate missions and investigations that meet fundamental science objectives of NASA and the Mars Exploration Program (MEP). At the time this paper was written, these possible future missions are planned in a manner consistent with a projected budget profile for the Mars Program in the next decade (2007-2016). As with all future missions, the funding profile depends on a number of factors that include the exact cost of each mission as well as potential changes to the overall NASA budget. In the current version of the Mars Program Plan, the Astrobiology Field Laboratory (AFL) exists as a candidate project to determine whether there were (or are) habitable zones and life, and how the development of these zones may be related to the overall evolution of the planet. The AFL concept is a surface exploration mission equipped with a major in situ laboratory capable of making significant advancements toward the Mars Program's life-related scientific goals and the overarching Vision for Space Exploration. We have developed several concepts for the AFL that fit within known budget and engineering constraints projected for the 2016 and 2018 Mars mission launch opportunities. The AFL mission architecture proposed here assumes maximum heritage from the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). Candidate payload elements for this concept were identified from a set of recommendations put forth by the Astrobiology Field Laboratory Science Steering Group (AFL SSG) in 2004, for the express purpose of identifying overall rover mass and power requirements for such a mission. The conceptual payload includes a Precision Sample Handling and Processing System that would replace and augment the functionality and capabilities provided by the Sample Acquisition Sample Processing and Handling system that is currently part of the 2009 MSL platform.

Probing below the Surface of Mars. ITEA/NASA-JPL Learning Activity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Urquhart, Mary; Urquhart, Sally

2000-01-01

This activity, developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, involves students in recording and graphing temperature data to learn about NASA's Mars Microprobe Mission, Deep Space 2, and how the properties of a material affect the transfer of heat. (Author/JOW)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis (left) shares a light moment with NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis (left) shares a light moment with NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

Mars Lander Deck of NASA's InSight Mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-28

This view looks upward toward the InSight Mars lander suspended upside down. It shows the top of the lander's science deck with the mission's two main science instruments -- the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) and the Heat Flow and Physical Properties Probe (HP3) -- plus the robotic arm and other subsystems installed. The photo was taken Aug. 9, 2017, in a Lockheed Martin clean room facility in Littleton, Colorado. The InSight mission (for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) is scheduled to launch in May 2018 and land on Mars Nov. 26, 2018. It will investigate processes that formed and shaped Mars and will help scientists better understand the evolution of our inner solar system's rocky planets, including Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21847

Mars Sample Return: Do Australians trust NASA?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joyce, S.; Tomkins, C. S.; Weinstein, P.

2008-09-01

Mars Sample Return (MSR) represents an important scientific goal in space exploration. Any sample return mission will be extremely challenging from a scientific, economic and technical standpoint. But equally testing, will be communicating with a public that may have a very different perception of the mission. A MSR mission will generate international publicity and it is vital that NASA acknowledge the nature and extent of public concern about the mission risks and, perhaps equally importantly, the public’s confidence in NASA’s ability to prepare for and manage these risks. This study investigated the level of trust in NASA in an Australian population sample, and whether this trust was dependent on demographic variables. Participants completed an online survey that explored their attitudes towards NASA and a MSR mission. The results suggested that people believe NASA will complete the mission successfully but have doubts as to whether NASA will be honest when communicating with the public. The most significant finding to emerge from this study was that confidence in NASA was significantly (p < 0.05) related to the respondent’s level of knowledge regarding the risks and benefits of MSR. These results have important implications for risk management and communication.

Methane Measurements by NASA Curiosity in Mars Gale Crater

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-12-16

This graphic shows tenfold spiking in the abundance of methane in the Martian atmosphere surrounding NASA Curiosity Mars rover, as detected by a series of measurements made with the Tunable Laser Spectrometer instrument in the rover laboratory suite.

NASA Participates in Mars Day Activities at the National Air and Space Museum

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-21

NASA participated in the July 21 Mars Day event at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) in Washington, D.C. The museum hosts this annual event, which includes exhibits, speakers and educational activities, to celebrate the Red Planet. Jim Green, director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division, along with other NASA scientists and engineers, was on hand to talk with visitors about the agency’s Mars exploration missions. There was also a Mars concept rover on display, developed by vehicle designers the Parker Brothers with advice from NASA. The vehicle is currently on an East Coast tour from its home base at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor’s Complex in Florida. The concept rover is designed to engage and educate the public by demonstrating the types of features and equipment a future human exploration vehicle may need.

Current NASA Plans for Mars In Situ Resource Utilization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sanders, Gerald

2018-01-01

The presentation is to provide relevant information to the NASA funded Center for the Utilization of Biological Engineering in Space (CUBES) Institute. The presentation cover the following: 1) What is In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU), 2) What are the resources of interest at the Moon and Mars, 3) ISRU-related mission requirements and ISRU economics, 4) Challenges and Risk for ISRU, 5) Concept of Operation for Mars ISRU Systems, 6) Current State of the Art (SOA) in ISRU, and 7) Current ISRU development and mission status.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers watch as an overhead crane begins to lift the backshell with the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) inside. The backshell will be moved and attached to the lower heat shield. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-15

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers watch as an overhead crane begins to lift the backshell with the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) inside. The backshell will be moved and attached to the lower heat shield. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A closeup of the cruise stage to be mated to the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) entry vehicle. The cruise stage includes fuel tanks, thruster clusters and avionics for steering and propulsion. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch June 5 as MER-A aboard a Delta rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-06

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A closeup of the cruise stage to be mated to the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) entry vehicle. The cruise stage includes fuel tanks, thruster clusters and avionics for steering and propulsion. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch June 5 as MER-A aboard a Delta rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility prepare to lift and move the backshell that will cover the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) and its lander. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-10

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility prepare to lift and move the backshell that will cover the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) and its lander. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Comparing NASA and ESA Cost Estimating Methods for Human Missions to Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hunt, Charles D.; vanPelt, Michel O.

2004-01-01

To compare working methodologies between the cost engineering functions in NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and ESA European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), as well as to set-up cost engineering capabilities for future manned Mars projects and other studies which involve similar subsystem technologies in MSFC and ESTEC, a demonstration cost estimate exercise was organized. This exercise was a direct way of enhancing not only cooperation between agencies but also both agencies commitment to credible cost analyses. Cost engineers in MSFC and ESTEC independently prepared life-cycle cost estimates for a reference human Mars project and subsequently compared the results and estimate methods in detail. As a non-sensitive, public domain reference case for human Mars projects, the Mars Direct concept was chosen. In this paper the results of the exercise are shown; the differences and similarities in estimate methodologies, philosophies, and databases between MSFC and ESTEC, as well as the estimate results for the Mars Direct concept. The most significant differences are explained and possible estimate improvements identified. In addition, the Mars Direct plan and the extensive cost breakdown structure jointly set-up by MSFC and ESTEC for this concept are presented. It was found that NASA applied estimate models mainly based on historic Apollo and Space Shuttle cost data, taking into account the changes in technology since then. ESA used models mostly based on European satellite and launcher cost data, taking into account the higher equipment and testing standards for human space flight. Most of NASA's and ESA s estimates for the Mars Direct case are comparable, but there are some important, consistent differences in the estimates for: 1) Large Structures and Thermal Control subsystems; 2) System Level Management, Engineering, Product Assurance and Assembly, Integration and Test/Verification activities; 3) Mission Control; 4) Space Agency Program Level

NASA's Decadal Planning Team Mars Mission Analysis Summary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drake, Bret G.

2007-02-01

In June 1999 the NASA Administrator chartered an internal NASA task force, termed the Decadal Planning Team, to create new integrated vision and strategy for space exploration. The efforts of the Decadal Planning Team evolved into the Agency-wide team known as the NASA Exploration Team (NEXT). This team was also instructed to identify technology roadmaps to enable the science-driven exploration vision, established a cross-Enterprise, cross-Center systems engineering team with emphasis focused on revolutionary not evolutionary approaches. The strategy of the DPT and NEXT teams was to "Go Anywhere, Anytime" by conquering key exploration hurdles of space transportation, crew health and safety, human/robotic partnerships, affordable abundant power, and advanced space systems performance. Early emphasis was placed on revolutionary exploration concepts such as rail gun and electromagnetic launchers, propellant depots, retrograde trajectories, nano structures, and gas core nuclear rockets to name a few. Many of these revolutionary concepts turned out to be either not feasible for human exploration missions or well beyond expected technology readiness for near-term implementation. During the DPT and NEXT study cycles, several architectures were analyzed including missions to the Earth-Sun Libration Point (L2), the Earth-Moon Gateway and L1, the lunar surface, Mars (both short and long stays), one-year round trip Mars, and near-Earth asteroids. Common emphasis of these studies included utilization of the Earth-Moon Libration Point (L1) as a staging point for exploration activities, current (Shuttle) and near-term launch capabilities (EELV), advanced propulsion, and robust space power. Although there was much emphasis placed on utilization of existing launch capabilities, the team concluded that missions in near-Earth space are only marginally feasible and human missions to Mars were not feasible without a heavy lift launch capability. In addition, the team concluded that

NASA's Decadal Planning Team Mars Mission Analysis Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G. (Editor)

2007-01-01

In June 1999 the NASA Administrator chartered an internal NASA task force, termed the Decadal Planning Team, to create new integrated vision and strategy for space exploration. The efforts of the Decadal Planning Team evolved into the Agency-wide team known as the NASA Exploration Team (NEXT). This team was also instructed to identify technology roadmaps to enable the science-driven exploration vision, established a cross-Enterprise, cross-Center systems engineering team with emphasis focused on revolutionary not evolutionary approaches. The strategy of the DPT and NEXT teams was to "Go Anywhere, Anytime" by conquering key exploration hurdles of space transportation, crew health and safety, human/robotic partnerships, affordable abundant power, and advanced space systems performance. Early emphasis was placed on revolutionary exploration concepts such as rail gun and electromagnetic launchers, propellant depots, retrograde trajectories, nano structures, and gas core nuclear rockets to name a few. Many of these revolutionary concepts turned out to be either not feasible for human exploration missions or well beyond expected technology readiness for near-term implementation. During the DPT and NEXT study cycles, several architectures were analyzed including missions to the Earth-Sun Libration Point (L2), the Earth-Moon Gateway and L1, the lunar surface, Mars (both short and long stays), one-year round trip Mars, and near-Earth asteroids. Common emphasis of these studies included utilization of the Earth-Moon Libration Point (L1) as a staging point for exploration activities, current (Shuttle) and near-term launch capabilities (EELV), advanced propulsion, and robust space power. Although there was much emphasis placed on utilization of existing launch capabilities, the team concluded that missions in near-Earth space are only marginally feasible and human missions to Mars were not feasible without a heavy lift launch capability. In addition, the team concluded that

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the first half of the fairing for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) is installed around the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2). MER-2 is one of NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 8 as MER-A, with two launch opportunities each day during the launch period that closes on June 19.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-31

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the first half of the fairing for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) is installed around the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2). MER-2 is one of NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 8 as MER-A, with two launch opportunities each day during the launch period that closes on June 19.

The NASA Mars Conference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reiber, Duke B.

Papers about Mars and Mars exploration are presented, covering topics such as Martian history, geology, volcanism, channels, moons, atmosphere, meteorology, water on the planet, and the possibility of life. The unmanned exploration of Mars is discussed, including the Phobos Mission, the Mars Observer, the Mars Aeronomy Observer, the seismic network, Mars sample return missions, and the Mars Ball, an inflatable-sectored-tire rover concept. Issues dealing with manned exploration of Mars are examined, such as the reasons for exploring Mars, mission scenarios, a transportation system for routine visits, technologies for Mars expeditions, the human factors for Mars missions, life support systems, living and working on Mars, and the report of the National Commission on Space.

Benefits of Mars ISRU Regolith Water Processing: A Case Study for the NASA Evolvable Mars Campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kleinhenz, Julie; Paz, Aaron; Mueller, Robert

2016-01-01

ISRU of Mars resources was baselined in 2009 Design Reference Architecture (DRA) 5.0, but only for Oxygen production using atmospheric CO2. The Methane (LCH4) needed for ascent propulsion of the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) would need to be brought from Earth. However: Extracting water from the Martian Regolith enables the production of both Oxygen and Methane from Mars resources: Water resources could also be used for other applications including: Life support, radiation shielding, plant growth, etc. Water extraction was not baselined in DRA5.0 due to perceived difficulties and complexity in processing regolith. The NASA Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC) requested studies to look at the quantitative benefits and trades of using Mars water ISRUPhase 1: Examined architecture scenarios for regolith water retrieval. Completed October 2015. Phase 2: Deep dive of one architecture concept to look at end-to-end system size, mass, power of a LCH4/LO2 ISRU production system

JPL-20180505-INSIGHf-0001-NASA InSight on Its Way to Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-05

Making history as the first interplanetary launch from the West Coast, NASA's InSight spacecraft is now soaring towards Mars. The spacecraft, which lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in Central California, will be the first mission to study the deep interior of Mars. Its instruments include a seismometer to detect marsquakes for the first time and a heat flow p[robe that will embed itself as deep as about 16 feet (5 meters) below the surface of Mars.

NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Mars Transit Habitat Refinement Point of Departure Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simon, Matthew; Latorella, Kara; Martin, John; Cerro, Jeff; Lepsch, Roger; Jefferies, Sharon; Goodliff, Kandyce; McCleskey, Carey; Smitherman, David; Stromgren, Chel

2017-01-01

This paper describes the recently developed point of departure design for a long duration, reusable Mars Transit Habitat, which was established during a 2016 NASA habitat design refinement activity supporting the definition of NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign. As part of its development of sustainable human Mars mission concepts achievable in the 2030s, the Evolvable Mars Campaign has identified desired durations and mass/dimensional limits for long duration Mars habitat designs to enable the currently assumed solar electric and chemical transportation architectures. The Advanced Exploration Systems Mars Transit Habitat Refinement Activity brought together habitat subsystem design expertise from across NASA to develop an increased fidelity, consensus design for a transit habitat within these constraints. The resulting design and data (including a mass equipment list) contained in this paper are intended to help teams across the agency and potential commercial, academic, or international partners understand: 1) the current architecture/habitat guidelines and assumptions, 2) performance targets of such a habitat (particularly in mass, volume, and power), 3) the driving technology/capability developments and architectural solutions which are necessary for achieving these targets, and 4) mass reduction opportunities and research/design needs to inform the development of future research and proposals. Data presented includes: an overview of the habitat refinement activity including motivation and process when informative; full documentation of the baseline design guidelines and assumptions; detailed mass and volume breakdowns; a moderately detailed concept of operations; a preliminary interior layout design with rationale; a list of the required capabilities necessary to enable the desired mass; and identification of any worthwhile trades/analyses which could inform future habitat design efforts. As a whole, the data in the paper show that a transit habitat meeting the 43

CNES-NASA Studies of the Mars Sample Return Orbiter Aerocapture Phase

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fraysse, H.; Powell, R.; Rousseau, S.; Striepe, S.

2000-01-01

A Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission has been proposed as a joint CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales) and NASA effort in the ongoing Mars Exploration Program. The MSR mission is designed to return the first samples of Martian soil to Earth. The primary elements of the mission are a lander, rover, ascent vehicle, orbiter, and an Earth entry vehicle. The Orbiter has been allocated only 2700 kg on the launch phase to perform its part of the mission. This mass restriction has led to the decision to use an aerocapture maneuver at Mars for the orbiter. Aerocapture replaces the initial propulsive capture maneuver with a single atmospheric pass. This atmospheric pass will result in the proper apoapsis, but a periapsis raise maneuver is required at the first apoapsis. The use of aerocapture reduces the total mass requirement by approx. 45% for the same payload. This mission will be the first to use the aerocapture technique. Because the spacecraft is flying through the atmosphere, guidance algorithms must be developed that will autonomously provide the proper commands to reach the desired orbit while not violating any of the design parameters (e.g. maximum deceleration, maximum heating rate, etc.). The guidance algorithm must be robust enough to account for uncertainties in delivery states, atmospheric conditions, mass properties, control system performance, and aerodynamics. To study this very critical phase of the mission, a joint CNES-NASA technical working group has been formed. This group is composed of atmospheric trajectory specialists from CNES, NASA Langley Research Center and NASA Johnson Space Center. This working group is tasked with developing and testing guidance algorithms, as well as cross-validating CNES and NASA flight simulators for the Mars atmospheric entry phase of this mission. The final result will be a recommendation to CNES on the algorithm to use, and an evaluation of the flight risks associated with the algorithm. This paper will describe the

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis (left) is introduced to the media by NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis (left) is introduced to the media by NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis poses proudly with a banner displaying the names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president; Sofi Collis, third grade student from Arizona; Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis poses proudly with a banner displaying the names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president; Sofi Collis, third grade student from Arizona; Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis unveils the names of the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe; Sofi Collis, a third grade student from Arizona; and Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis unveils the names of the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe; Sofi Collis, a third grade student from Arizona; and Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers walk with the suspended backshell/ Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) as it travels across the floor of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The backshell will be attached to the lower heat shield. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-15

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers walk with the suspended backshell/ Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) as it travels across the floor of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The backshell will be attached to the lower heat shield. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Curiosity rover hits organic pay dirt on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voosen, Paul

2018-06-01

Since NASA's Curiosity rover landed on Mars in 2012, it has sifted samples of soil and ground-up rock for signs of organic molecules—the complex carbon chains that on Earth form the building blocks of life. Past detections have been so faint that they could be just contamination. Now, samples taken from two different drill sites on an ancient lakebed have yielded complex organic macromolecules that look strikingly similar to kerogen, the goopy fossilized building blocks of oil and gas on Earth. At a few dozen parts per million, the detected levels are 100 times higher than previous finds, but scientists still cannot say whether they have origins in biology or geology. The discovery positions scientists to begin searching for direct evidence of past life on Mars and bolsters the case for returning rock samples from the planet, an effort that begins with the Mars 2020 rover.

Microscopes for NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2007-01-01

One part of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer instrument for NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is a pair of telescopes with a special wheel (on the right in this photograph) for presenting samples to be inspected with the microscopes. A horizontally mounted optical microscope (on the left in this photograph) and an atomic force microscope will examine soil particles and possibly ice particles.

The shapes and the size distributions of soil particles may tell scientists about environmental conditions the material has experienced. Tumbling rounds the edges. Repeated wetting and freezing causes cracking. Clay minerals formed during long exposure to water have distinctive, platy particles shapes.

The Digital Twin Paradigm for Future NASA and U.S. Air Force Vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glaessgen, Edward H.; Stargel, D. S.

2012-01-01

Future generations of NASA and U.S. Air Force vehicles will require lighter mass while being subjected to higher loads and more extreme service conditions over longer time periods than the present generation. Current approaches for certification, fleet management and sustainment are largely based on statistical distributions of material properties, heuristic design philosophies, physical testing and assumed similitude between testing and operational conditions and will likely be unable to address these extreme requirements. To address the shortcomings of conventional approaches, a fundamental paradigm shift is needed. This paradigm shift, the Digital Twin, integrates ultra-high fidelity simulation with the vehicle s on-board integrated vehicle health management system, maintenance history and all available historical and fleet data to mirror the life of its flying twin and enable unprecedented levels of safety and reliability.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) , air bags are installed on the lander. The airbags will inflate to cushion the landing of the spacecraft on the surface of Mars. When it stops bouncing and rolling, the airbags will deflate and retract, the petals will open to bring the lander to an upright position, and the rover will be exposed. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-10

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) , air bags are installed on the lander. The airbags will inflate to cushion the landing of the spacecraft on the surface of Mars. When it stops bouncing and rolling, the airbags will deflate and retract, the petals will open to bring the lander to an upright position, and the rover will be exposed. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Obama sets out NASA's new mission to Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gwynne, Peter

2010-05-01

US President Barack Obama has announced a new direction for NASA that includes plans to send astronauts to an asteroid by 2025. Speaking last month at Florida's Kennedy Space Center, the launching location for US manned spaceflights, Obama also called for a new "heavy-lift" rocket design to take astronauts on a mission to orbit Mars by the mid-2030s that will "eventually" be used to transport humans to the Martian surface.

Upgrades, Current Capabilities and Near-Term Plans of the NASA ARC Mars Climate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hollingsworth, J. L.; Kahre, Melinda April; Haberle, Robert M.; Schaeffer, James R.

2012-01-01

We describe and review recent upgrades to the ARC Mars climate modeling framework, in particular, with regards to physical parameterizations (i.e., testing, implementation, modularization and documentation); the current climate modeling capabilities; selected research topics regarding current/past climates; and then, our near-term plans related to the NASA ARC Mars general circulation modeling (GCM) project.

Mars Odyssey Seen by Mars Global Surveyor

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-05-19

This view is an enlargement of an image of NASA Mars Odyssey spacecraft taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera aboard NASA Mars Global Surveyor while the two spacecraft were about 90 kilometers 56 miles apart.

NASA's Phoenix Lander on Mars, Nearly a Decade Later

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-20

This is one of two images taken nearly a decade apart of NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander and related hardware around the mission's May 25, 2008, landing site on far-northern Mars. By late 2017, dust had obscured much of what was visible two months after the landing. Both images were taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The one with three patches of darker ground -- where landing events removed dust -- was taken on July 20, 2008. It is Fig. 1, an excerpt of HiRISE observation PSP_009290_2485. The one with a more even coating of pale dust throughout the area was taken on Dec. 21, 2017. It is Fig. 2, an excerpt of HiRISE observation ESP_053451_2485. Both cover an area roughly 300 meters wide at 68 degrees north latitude, 234 degrees east longitude, and the two are closely matched in viewing and illumination geometry, from about five Martian years apart in northern hemisphere summers. An animation comparing the two images shows a number of changes between mid-2008 and late 2017. The lander (top) appears darker, and is now covered by dust. The dark spot created by the heat shield impact (right) is brighter, again due to dust deposition. The back shell and parachute (bottom) shows a darker parachute and brighter area of impact disturbance, thanks again to deposits of dust. We also see that the parachute has shifted in the wind, moving to the east. In August 2008, Phoenix completed its three-month mission studying Martian ice, soil and atmosphere. The lander worked for two additional months before reduced sunlight caused energy to become insufficient to keep the lander functioning. The solar-powered robot was not designed to survive through the dark and cold conditions of a Martian arctic winter. An animation and both images are available at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22223

A Full Panel of Twins

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-01-06

Researchers found likely twins of the giant, erupting star Eta Carinae by comparing infrared images from NASA Spitzer Space Telescope (top) and NASA Hubble Space Telescope (bottom). Astronomers cannot yet explain what caused the titanic eruption of star Eta Carinae in the 1840s. The discovery of likely Eta Carinae "twins" in other galaxies will help scientists better understand this brief phase in the life of a massive star. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20018

SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION: A More Cautious NASA Sets Plans for Mars.

PubMed

Lawler, A

2000-11-03

Twice burned by mission failures last year, NASA managers last week unveiled a new 15-year blueprint for Mars exploration. The revamped strategy allows for doing more science, but at a slower pace, while delaying a sample return until well into the next decade.

Reference Mission Version 3.0 Addendum to the Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team. Addendum; 3.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G. (Editor)

1998-01-01

This Addendum to the Mars Reference Mission was developed as a companion document to the NASA Special Publication 6107, "Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team." It summarizes changes and updates to the Mars Reference Missions that were developed by the Exploration Office since the final draft of SP 6107 was printed in early 1999. The Reference Mission is a tool used by the exploration community to compare and evaluate approaches to mission and system concepts that could be used for human missions to Mars. It is intended to identify and clarify system drivers, significant sources of cost, performance, risk, and schedule variation. Several alternative scenarios, employing different technical approaches to solving mission and technology challenges, are discussed in this Addendum. Comparing alternative approaches provides the basis for continual improvement to technology investment plan and a general understanding of future human missions to Mars. The Addendum represents a snapshot of work in progress in support of planning for future human exploration missions through May 1998.

Mission to Mars: Connecting Diverse Student Groups with NASA Experts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Polsgrove, Tara; Jones, David; Sadowski-Fugitt, Leslie; Kowrach, Nicole

2012-01-01

The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago has formulated an innovative approach to inspiring the next generation to pursue STEM education. Middle school students in Chicago and at nearby Challenger Learning Centers work in teams to design a mission to Mars. Each mission includes real time access to NASA experts through partnerships with Marshall Space Flight Center, Johnson Space Center, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Interactive videoconferencing connects students at the museum with students at a Challenger Learning Center and with NASA experts. This paper describes the approach, the results from the program s first year, and future opportunities for nationwide expansion.

Advancing the Journey to Mars on This Week @NASA – October 30, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-10-30

During an Oct. 28 keynote speech at the Center for American Progress, in Washington, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden spoke about the advancement made on the journey to Mars and what lies ahead for future administrations and policy makers. NASA’s recently released report “Journey to Mars: Pioneering Next Steps in Space Exploration,” outlines its plan to reach Mars in phases – with technology demonstrations and research aboard the International Space Station, followed by hardware and procedure development in the proving ground around the moon, before sending humans to the Red Planet. Also, Space station spacewalk, Another record in space for Kelly, Mars Landing Sites/ Exploration Zones Workshop, Cassini’s “deep dive” flyby and more!

NASA Ames Science Instrument Launches Aboard New Mars Rover (CheMin)

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-23

When NASA's Mars Science Laboratory lands in a region known as Gale Crater in August of 2012, it will be poised to carry out the most sophisticated chemical analysis of the Martian surface to date. One of the 10 instruments on board the rover Curiosity will be CheMin - short for chemistry and mineralogy. Developed by Ames researcher David Blake and his team, it will use new technology to analyze and identify minerals in the Martian rocks and soil. Youtube: NASA Ames Scientists Develop MSL Science Instrument

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mobile Service Tower is rolled back at Launch Complex 17A to reveal a Delta II rocket ready to launch the Mars Exploration Rover-A mission. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mobile Service Tower is rolled back at Launch Complex 17A to reveal a Delta II rocket ready to launch the Mars Exploration Rover-A mission. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

Images From Comet’s Mars Flyby On This Week @NASA - October 24, 2014

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-24

Several Mars-based NASA spacecraft had prime viewing positions for comet Siding Spring’s October 19 close flyby of the Red Planet. Early images included a composite photo from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope that combined shots of Mars, the comet, and a star background to illustrate Siding Spring’s distance from Mars at closest approach. Also, images from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s HiRISE camera, which represent the highest-resolution views ever acquired of a comet that came from the Oort Cloud, at the outer fringe of the solar system. The comet flyby – only about 87,000 miles from Mars – was much closer than any other known comet flyby of a planet. Also, Partial solar eclipse, Space station spacewalk, Preparing to release Dragon, Cygnus launch update, Welding begins on SLS, Astronaut class visits Glenn and more!

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis is introduced to the media at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis is introduced to the media at a press conference. The Siberian-born Arizona resident wrote the winning entry in the Name the Rovers Contest sponsored by NASA and the Lego Co., a Denmark-based toymaker, with collaboration from the Planetary Society, Pasadena, Calif. The names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers are "Spirit" and "Opportunity." The third grader's essay was chosen from more than 10,000 American student entries. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connolly, John

1998-01-01

The Reference Mission was developed over a period of several years and was published in NASA Special Publication 6107 in July 1997. The purpose of the Reference Mission was to provide a workable model for the human exploration of Mars, which is described in enough detail that alternative strategies and implementations can be compared and evaluated. NASA is continuing to develop the Reference Mission and expects to update this report in the near future. It was the purpose of the Reference Mission to develop scenarios based on the needs of scientists and explorers who want to conduct research on Mars; however, more work on the surface-mission aspects of the Reference Mission is required and is getting under way. Some aspects of the Reference Mission that are important for the consideration of the surface mission definition include: (1) a split mission strategy, which arrives at the surface two years before the arrival of the first crew; (2) three missions to the outpost site over a 6-year period; (3) a plant capable of producing rocket propellant for lifting off Mars and caches of water, O, and inert gases for the life-support system; (4) a hybrid physico-chemical/bioregenerative life-support system, which emphasizes the bioregenerative system more in later parts of the scenario; (5) a nuclear reactor power supply, which provides enough power for all operations, including the operation of a bioregenerative life-support system as well as the propellant and consumable plant; (6) capability for at least two people to be outside the habitat each day of the surface stay; (7) telerobotic and human-operated transportation vehicles, including a pressurized rover capable of supporting trips of several days' duration from the habitat; (7) crew stay times of 500 days on the surface, with six-person crews; and (8) multiple functional redundancies to reduce risks to the crews on the surface. New concepts are being sought that would reduce the overall cost for this exploration

Mars Odyssey Seen by Mars Global Surveyor 3-D

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-05-19

This stereoscopic picture of NASA Mars Odyssey spacecraft was created from two views of that spacecraft taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA Mars Global Surveyor. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image.

ourney to Mars: An international effort on This Week @NASA – October 16, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-10-16

During meetings and public events at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Oct. 12-16 in Jerusalem, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden and several other NASA officials highlighted the agency’s recently released plan to send astronauts to Mars in the 2030’s. They also emphasized the need for international partnerships and cooperation to make a mission of this magnitude a reality, the importance of harnessing enthusiasm for space exploration and the need to encourage young people to develop the skills we’ll need for the Journey to Mars. Also, New American record in space, Flyby of Saturnian moon, Next launch for Cygnus, Access to space for small satellites and more! JPL Open House is a big draw.

The Thermal Infrared Sensor onboard NASA's Mars 2020 Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martinez, G.; Perez-Izquierdo, J.; Sebastian, E.; Ramos, M.; Bravo, A.; Mazo, M.; Rodriguez-Manfredi, J. A.

2017-12-01

NASA's Mars 2020 rover mission is scheduled for launch in July/August 2020 and will address key questions about the potential for life on Mars. The Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) is one of the seven instruments onboard the rover [1] and has been designed to assess the environmental conditions across the rover traverse. MEDA will extend the current record of in-situ meteorological measurements at the surface [2] to other locations on Mars. The Thermal InfraRed Sensor (TIRS) [3] is one of the six sensors comprising MEDA. TIRS will use three downward-looking channels to measure (1) the surface skin temperature (with high heritage from the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station onboard the Mars Science Laboratory mission [4]), (2) the upwelling thermal infrared radiation from the surface and (3) the reflected solar radiation at the surface, and two upward-looking channels to measure the (4) downwelling thermal infrared radiation at the surface and (5) the atmospheric temperature. In combination with other MEDA's sensors, TIRS will allow the quantification of the surface energy budget [5] and the determination of key geophysical properties of the terrain such as the albedo and thermal inertia with an unprecedented spatial resolution. Here we present a general description of the TIRS, with focus on its scientific requirements and results from field campaigns showing the performance of the different channels. References:[1] Rodríguez-Manfredi, J. A. et al. (2014), MEDA: An environmental and meteorological package for Mars 2020, LPSC, 45, 2837. [2] Martínez, G.M. et al. (2017), The Modern Near-Surface Martian Climate: A Review of In-situ Meteorological Data from Viking to Curiosity, Space Science Reviews, 1-44. [3] Pérez-Izquierdo, J. et al. (2017), The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) of the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) Instrument onboard Mars 2020, IEEE. [4] Sebastián, E. et al. (2010), The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station Ground

Relays from Mars demonstrate international interplanetary networking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2004-08-01

.” In addition, Mars Express is verifying two other operating modes with Opportunity and the twin rover, Spirit, from a greater distance. On 3 and 6 August, when Mars Express listened to Spirit, it was about 6000 kilometres above the surface. At this range it successfully tracked a beacon from Spirit, demonstrating a capability that can be used to locate another craft during critical events, such as the descent to a planet’s surface, or for orbital rendez-vous manoeuvres. “Establishing a reliable communication network around Mars or other planets is crucial for future exploration missions, as it will allow improved coverage and also an increase in the amount of data that can be brought back to Earth,” said Con McCarthy, from ESA’s Mars Express project, “the tracking mode will enable ESA and NASA to pinpoint a spacecraft’s position more accurately during critical mission phases.” The final session of the series, scheduled for 13 August with Opportunity, will demonstrate a mode for gaining navigational information from the ‘Doppler shift’ in the radio signal.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis poses proudly with a banner displaying the names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president; Sofi Collis, a third grade student from Arizona; Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-06-08

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Nine-year-old Sofi Collis poses proudly with a banner displaying the names she selected for the Mars Exploration Rovers -- "Spirit" and "Opportunity" -- during a press conference. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Brad Justus, LEGO Co. senior vice president; Sofi Collis, a third grade student from Arizona; Dr. John Marburger, science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. The names Sofi suggested were selected from more than 10,000 student entries in an essay contest managed for NASA by the LEGO Company. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-A, with the rover Spirit aboard, is scheduled to launch on June 8 at 2:06 p.m. EDT, with two launch opportunities each day during a launch period that closes on June 24.

Recent Upgrades to the NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model: Applications to Mars' Water Cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hollingsworth, Jeffery L.; Kahre, M. A.; Haberle, R. M.; Montmessin, F.; Wilson, R. J.; Schaeffer, J.

2008-09-01

We report on recent improvements to the NASA Ames Mars general circulation model (GCM), a robust 3D climate-modeling tool that is state-of-the-art in terms of its physics parameterizations and subgrid-scale processes, and which can be applied to investigate physical and dynamical processes of the present (and past) Mars climate system. The most recent version (gcm2.1, v.24) of the Ames Mars GCM utilizes a more generalized radiation code (based on a two-stream approximation with correlated k's); an updated transport scheme (van Leer formulation); a cloud microphysics scheme that assumes a log-normal particle size distribution whose first two moments are treated as atmospheric tracers, and which includes the nucleation, growth and sedimentation of ice crystals. Atmospheric aerosols (e.g., dust and water-ice) can either be radiatively active or inactive. We apply this version of the Ames GCM to investigate key aspects of the present water cycle on Mars. Atmospheric dust is partially interactive in our simulations; namely, the radiation code "sees" a prescribed distribution that follows the MGS thermal emission spectrometer (TES) year-one measurements with a self-consistent vertical depth scale that varies with season. The cloud microphysics code interacts with a transported dust tracer column whose surface source is adjusted to maintain the TES distribution. The model is run from an initially dry state with a better representation of the north residual cap (NRC) which accounts for both surface-ice and bare-soil components. A seasonally repeatable water cycle is obtained within five Mars years. Our sub-grid scale representation of the NRC provides for a more realistic flux of moisture to the atmosphere and a much drier water cycle consistent with recent spacecraft observations (e.g., Mars Express PFS, corrected MGS/TES) compared to models that assume a spatially uniform and homogeneous north residual polar cap.

Mars Mapping Technology Brings Main Street to Life

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

The Red Planet has long held a particular hold on the human psyche. From the Roman god of war to Orson Welles infamous Halloween broadcast, our nearest planetary neighbor has been viewed with curiosity, suspicion, and awe. Pictures of Mars from 1965 to the present reveal familiar landscapes while also challenging our perceptions and revising our understanding of the processes at work in planets. Frequent discoveries have forced significant revisions to previous theories. Although Mars shares many familiar features with Earth, such as mountains, plains, valleys, and polar ice, the conditions on Mars can vary wildly from those with which we are familiar. The apparently cold, rocky, and dusty wasteland seen through the eyes of spacecraft and Martian probes hints at a dynamic past of volcanic activity, cataclysmic meteors, and raging waters. New discoveries continue to revise our view of our next-door neighbor, and further exploration is now paving the way for a human sortie to the fourth stone from the Sun. NASA s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration, utilizes wide-angle stereo cameras mounted on NASA s twin robot geologists, the Mars Exploration Rovers (MERs), launched in 2003. The rovers, named "Spirit" and "Opportunity," celebrated 4 Earth years of exploration on January 3, 2008, and have sent back a wealth of information on the terrain and composition of the Martian surface. Their marathon performance has far outlasted the intended 90 days of operation, and the two intrepid explorers promise more images and data.

PADME (Phobos And Deimos and Mars Environment): A Proposed NASA Discovery Mission to Investigate the Two Moons of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Pascal; Benna, Mehdi; Britt, Daniel; Colaprete, Anthony; Davis, Warren; Delory, Greg; Elphic, Richard; Fulsang, Ejner; Genova, Anthony; Glavin, Daniel;

Mars Express Seen by Mars Global Surveyor

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-05-19

This picture of the European Space Agency Mars Express spacecraft by the Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA Mars Global Surveyor is from the first successful imaging of any spacecraft orbiting Mars taken by another spacecraft orbiting Mars.

Our Newest Mission to Mars on This Week @NASA – May 5, 2018

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-05

Our newest mission to Mars is on its way, Vice President Pence visits our Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and observing our planet’s ever-changing water cycle – a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!

Report of the NASA Science Definition Team for the Mars Science Orbiter (MSO)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Michael

2007-01-01

NASA is considering that its Mars Exploration Program (MEP) will launch an orbiter to Mars in the 2013 launch opportunity. To further explore this opportunity, NASA has formed a Science Definition Team (SDT) for this orbiter mission, provisionally called the Mars Science Orbiter (MSO). Membership and leadership of the SDT are given in Appendix 1. Dr. Michael D. Smith chaired the SDT. The purpose of the SDT was to define the: 1) Scientific objectives of an MSO mission to be launched to Mars no earlier than the 2013 launch opportunity, building on the findings for Plan A [Atmospheric Signatures and Near-Surface Change] of the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) Second Science Analysis Group (SAG-2); 2) Science requirements of instruments that are most likely to make high priority measurements from the MSO platform, giving due consideration to the likely mission, spacecraft and programmatic constraints. The possibilities and opportunities for international partners to provide the needed instrumentation should be considered; 3) Desired orbits and mission profile for optimal scientific return in support of the scientific objectives, and the likely practical capabilities and the potential constraints defined by the science requirements; and 4) Potential science synergies with, or support for, future missions, such as a Mars Sample Return. This shall include imaging for evaluation and certification of future landing sites. As a starting point, the SDT was charged to assume spacecraft capabilities similar to those of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The SDT was further charged to assume that MSO would be scoped to support telecommunications relay of data from, and commands to, landed assets, over a 10 Earth year period following orbit insertion. Missions supported by MSO may include planned international missions such as EXOMARS. The MSO SDT study was conducted during October - December 2007. The SDT was directed to complete its work by December 15, 2007

A Review of Aerothermal Modeling for Mars Entry Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wright, Michael J; Tang, Chun Y.; Edquist, Karl T.; Hollis, Brian R.; Krasa, Paul

2009-01-01

The current status of aerothermal analysis for Mars entry missions is reviewed. The aeroheating environment of all Mars missions to date has been dominated by convective heating. Two primary uncertainties in our ability to predict forebody convective heating are turbulence on a blunt lifting cone and surface catalysis in a predominantly CO2 environment. Future missions, particularly crewed vehicles, will encounter additional heating from shock-layer radiation due to a combination of larger size and faster entry velocity. Localized heating due to penetrations or other singularities on the aeroshell must also be taken into account. The physical models employed to predict these phenomena are reviewed, and key uncertainties or deficiencies inherent in these models are explored. Capabilities of existing ground test facilities to support aeroheating validation are also summarized. Engineering flight data from the Viking and Pathfinder missions, which may be useful for aerothermal model validation, are discussed, and an argument is presented for obtaining additional flight data. Examples are taken from past, present, and future Mars entry missions, including the twin Mars Exploration Rovers and the Mars Science Laboratory, scheduled for launch by NASA in 2011.

Science in Exploration: From the Moon to Mars and Back Home to Earth

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garvin, James B.

2007-01-01

NASA is embarking on a grand journey of exploration that naturally integrates the past successes of the Apollo missions to the Moon, as well as robotic science missions to Mars, to Planet Earth, and to the broader Universe. The US Vision for Space Exporation (VSE) boldly lays out a plan for human and robotic reconnaissance of the accessible Universe, starting with the surface of the Moon, and later embracing the surface of Mars. Sustained human and robotic access to the Moon and Mars will enable a new era of scientific investigation of our planetary neighbors, tied to driving scientific questions that pertain to the evolution and destiny of our home planet, but which also can be related to the search habitable worlds across the nearby Universe. The Apollo missions provide a vital legacy for what can be learned from the Moon, and NASA is now poised to recapture the lunar frontier starting with the flight of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) in late 2008. LRO will provide a new scientific context from which joint human and robotic exploration will ensue, guided by objectives some of which are focused on the grandest scientific challenges imaginable : Where did we come from? Are we alone? and Where are we going? The Moon will serve as an essential stepping stone for sustained human access and exploration of deep space and as a training ground while robotic missions with ever increasing complexity probe the wonders of Mars. As we speak, an armada of spacecraft are actively investigating the red planet both from orbit (NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey Orbiter, plus ESA's Mars Express) and from the surface (NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers, and in 2008 NASA's Phoenix polar lander). The dramatically changing views of Mars as a potentially habitable world, with its own flavor of global climate change and unique climate records, provides a new vantage point from which to observe and question the workings of our own planet Earth. By 2010 NASA will

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is seen after installation of the air bags on the outside of the lander. The airbags will inflate to cushion the landing of the spacecraft on the surface of Mars. When it stops bouncing and rolling, the airbags will deflate and retract, the petals will open to bring the lander to an upright position, and the rover will be exposed. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-10

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) is seen after installation of the air bags on the outside of the lander. The airbags will inflate to cushion the landing of the spacecraft on the surface of Mars. When it stops bouncing and rolling, the airbags will deflate and retract, the petals will open to bring the lander to an upright position, and the rover will be exposed. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Diverse Orbits Around Mars Graphic

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-05-04

This graphic depicts the relative shapes and distances from Mars for five active orbiter missions plus the planet's two natural satellites. It illustrates the potential for intersections of the spacecraft orbits. The number of active orbiter missions at Mars increased from three to five in 2014. With the increased traffic, NASA has augmented a process for anticipating orbit intersections and avoiding collisions. NASA's Mars Odyssey and MRO (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) travel near-circular orbits. The European Space Agency's Mars Express, NASA's MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) and India's MOM (Mars Orbiter Mission), travel more elliptical orbits. Phobos and Deimos are the two natural moons of Mars. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19396

(Nearly) Seven Years on Mars: Adventure, Adversity, and Achievements with the NASA Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, J. F.; Mars Exploration Rover Science; Engineering Teams

2010-12-01

NASA successfully landed twin rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, on Mars in January 2004, in the most ambitious mission of robotic exploration attempted to that time. Each rover is outfitted as a robot field geologist with an impressive array of scientific instruments--cameras, spectrometers, other sensors--designed to investigate the composition and geologic history of two distinctly-different landing sites. The sites were chosen because of their potential to reveal clues about the past history of water and climate on Mars, and thus to provide tests of the hypothesis that the planet may once have been an abode for life. In this presentation I will review the images, spectra, and chemical/mineralogic information that the rover team has been acquiring from the landing sites and along the rovers' 7.7 and 22.7 km traverse paths, respectively. The data and interpretations have been widely shared with the public and the scientific community through web sites, frequent press releases, and scientific publications, and they provide quantitative evidence that liquid water has played a role in the modification of the Martian surface during the earliest part of the planet's history. At the Spirit site in Gusev Crater, the role of water appears to have been relatively minor in general, although the recent discovery of enigmatic hydrated sulfate salt and amorphous silica deposits suggests that locally there may have been significant water-rock interactions, and perhaps even sustained hydrothermal activity. At the Opportunity site in Meridiani Planum, geologic and mineralogic evidence suggests that liquid water was stable at the surface and shallow subsurface for significant periods of early Martian geologic history. An exciting implication from both missions is that localized environments on early Mars may have been "habitable" by some terrestrial standards. As of early September 2010, the rovers had operated for 2210 and 2347 Martian days (sols), respectively, with the Spirit

In Brief: NASA's Phoenix spacecraft lands on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Showstack, Randy; Kumar, Mohi

2008-06-01

After a 9.5-month, 679-million-kilometer flight from Florida, NASA's Phoenix spacecraft made a soft landing in Vastitas Borealis in Mars's northern polar region on 25 May. The lander, whose camera already has returned some spectacular images, is on a 3-month mission to examine the area and dig into the soil of this site-chosen for its likelihood of having frozen water near the surface-and analyze samples. In addition to a robotic arm and robotic arm camera, the lander's instruments include a surface stereo imager; thermal and evolved-gas analyzer; microscopy, electrochemistry, and conductivity analyzer; and a meteorological station that is tracking daily weather and seasonal changes.

Assemby, test, and launch operations for the Mars Exploration Rovers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wallace, Matthew T.; Hardy, Paul V.; Romero, Raul A.; Salvo, Christopher G.; Shain, Thomas W.; Thompson, Arthur D.; Wirth, John W.

2005-01-01

In January of 2004, NASA's twin Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, successfully landed on opposite sides of the Red Planet after a seven month Earth to Mars cruise period. Both vehicles have operated well beyond their 90 day primary mission design life requirements. The Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations (ATLO) program for these missions presented unique technical and schedule challenges to the team at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Among these challenges were a highly compressed schedule and late deliveries leading to extended double shift staffing, dual spacecraft operations requiring test program diversification and resource arbitration, multiple atypical test configurations for airbag/rocket landings and surface mobility testing, and verification of an exceptionally large number of separations, deployments, and mechanisms. This paper discusses the flight system test philosophies and approach, and presents lessons learned.

Halfway point of the one year mission on This Week @NASA – September 18, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-09-18

Sept. 15 marked the halfway point in the yearlong mission on the International Space Station with NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko. An event the day before at the National Press Club in Washington included a discussion about the biomedical research conducted on the station, to help formulate future human missions to Mars. Kelly participated from the space station. His identical twin, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, and NASA astronaut Terry Virts, who served as commander of Expedition 43, participated from the press club. Also, I spy the space station: Live!, Expedition 43 post-flight visit, Key milestone for Orion spacecraft, Global ocean on Enceladus, Connecting space to village and more!

Extending the NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model to Explore Mars’ Middle Atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brecht, Amanda; Hollingsworth, J.; Kahre, M.; Schaeffer, J.

2013-10-01

The NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM) upper boundary has been extended to ~120 km altitude (p ~10-5 mbar). The extension of the MGCM upper boundary initiates the ability to understand the connection between the lower and upper atmosphere of Mars through the middle atmosphere 70 - 120 km). Moreover, it provides the opportunity to support future missions (i.e. the 2013 MAVEN mission). A major factor in this extension is the incorporation of the Non-Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (NLTE) heating (visible) and cooling (infrared). This modification to the radiative transfer forcing (i.e., RT code) has been significantly tested in a 1D vertical column and now has been ported to the full 3D Mars GCM. Initial results clearly show the effects of NLTE in the upper middle atmosphere. Diagnostic of seasonal mean fields and large-scale wave activity will be shown with insight into circulation patterns in the middle atmosphere. Furthermore, sensitivity tests with the resolution of the pressure and temperature grids, in which the k-coefficients are calculated upon, have been performed in the 1D RT code. Our progress on this research will be presented. Brecht is supported by NASA’s Postdoctoral Program at the Ames Research Center, administered by Oak Ridge Associated Universities through a contract with NASA.

Analysis of the Meteorology Associated with the 1997 NASA Glenn Twin Otter Icing Events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bernstein, Ben C.

2000-01-01

This part of the document contains an analysis of the meteorology associated with the premier icing encounters from the January-March 1997 NASA Twin Otter dataset. The purpose of this analysis is to provide a meteorological context for the aircraft data collected during these flights. For each case, the following data elements are presented: (1) A detailed discussion of the Twin Otter encounter, including locations, liquid water contents, temperatures and microphysical makeup of the clouds and precipitation aloft, (2) Upper-air charts, providing hand-analyzed locations of lows, troughs, ridges, saturated/unsaturated air, temperatures, warm/cold advection, and jet streams, (3) Balloon-borne soundings, providing vertical profiles of temperature, moisture and winds, (4) Infrared satellite data, providing cloud locations and cloud top temperature, (5) 3-hourly surface charts, providing hand-analyzed locations of lows, highs, fronts, precipitation (including type) and cloud cover, (6) Hourly plots of icing pilot reports, providing the icing intensity, icing type, icing altitudes and aircraft type, (7) Hourly, regional radar mosaics, providing fine resolution of the locations of precipitation (including intensity and type), pilot reports of icing (including intensity and type), surface observations of precipitation type and Twin Otter tracks for a one hour window centered on the time of the radar data, and (8) Plots of data from individual NEXRAD radars at times and elevation angles that have been matched to Twin Otter flight locations. Outages occurred in nearly every dataset at some point. All relevant data that was available is presented here. All times are in UTC and all heights are in feet above mean sea level (MSL).

Cars on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landis, Geoffrey A.

2002-01-01

Mars is one of the most fascinating planets in the solar system, featuring an atmosphere, water, and enormous volcanoes and canyons. The Mars Pathfinder, Global Surveyor, and Odyssey missions mark the first wave of the Planet Earth's coming invasion of the red planet, changing our views of the past and future of the planet and the possibilities of life. Scientist and science-fiction writer Geoffrey A. Landis will present experiences on the Pathfinder mission, the challenges of using solar power on the surface of Mars, and present future missions to Mars such as the upcoming Mars Twin Rovers, which will launch two highly-capable vehicles in 2003 to explore the surface of Mars.

Mars Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-08-04

Colin Dundas, a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, speaks during a briefing, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011, at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) have revealed possible flowing water during the warmest months on Mars. Dark, finger-like features appear and extend down some Martian slopes during late spring through summer, fade in winter, and return during the next spring. Repeated observations have tracked the seasonal changes in these recurring features on several steep slopes in the middle latitudes of Mars' southern hemisphere. Photo Credit: (NASA/Paul E. Alers)

Power Requirements for The NASA Mars Design Reference Architecture (DRA) 5.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cataldo, Robert L.

2009-01-01

This paper summarizes the power systems analysis results from NASA s recent Mars DRA 5.0 study which examined three architecture options and resulting mission requirements for a human Mars landing mission in the post-2030 timeframe. DRA 5.0 features a long approximately 500 day surface stay split mission using separate cargo and crewed Mars transfer vehicles. Two cargo flights, utilizing minimum energy trajectories, pre-deploy a cargo lander to the surface and a habitat lander into a 24-hour elliptical Mars parking orbit where it remains until the arrival of the crew during the next mission opportunity approximately 26 months later. The pre-deployment of cargo poses unique challenges for set-up and emplacement of surface assets that results in the need for self or robotically deployed designs. Three surface architecture options were evaluated for breadth of science content, extent of exploration range/capability and variations in system concepts and technology. This paper describes the power requirements for the surface operations of the three mission options, power system analyses including discussion of the nuclear fission, solar photovoltaic and radioisotope concepts for main base power and long range mobility.

Analysis of the Meteorology Associated with the 1998 NASA Glenn Twin Otter Icing Flights

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bernstein, Ben C.

2000-01-01

This document contains a basic analysis of the meteorology associated with the NASA Glenn Twin Otter icing encounters between December 1997 and March 1998. The purpose of this analysis is to provide a meteorological context for the aircraft data collected during these flights. For each case, the following data elements are presented: (1) A brief overview of the Twin Otter encounter, including locations, liquid water contents, temperatures and microphysical makeup of the clouds and precipitation aloft, (2) Upper-air charts, providing hand-analyzed locations of lows, troughs, ridges, saturated/unsaturated air, temperatures, warm/cold advection, and jet streams, (3) Balloon-borne soundings, providing vertical profiles of temperature, moisture and winds, (4) Infrared and visible satellite data, providing cloud locations and cloud top temperature, (5) 3-hourly surface charts, providing hand-analyzed locations of lows, highs, fronts, precipitation (including type) and cloud cover, (6) Hourly, regional radar mosaics, providing fine resolution of the locations of precipitation (including intensity and type), pilot reports of icing (including intensity and type), surface observations of precipitation type and Twin Otter tracks for a one hour window centered on the time of the radar data, and (7) Hourly plots of icing pilot reports, providing the icing intensity, icing type, icing altitudes and aircraft type. Outages occurred in nearly every dataset at some point. All relevant data that was available is presented here. All times are in UTC and all heights are in feet above mean sea level (MSL).

Making milestones on the journey to Mars on This Week @NASA – August 7, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-08-07

NASA’s Curiosity rover celebrated the 3-year anniversary of its landing on Mars recently. Since landing, Curiosity has driven nearly seven miles to its current location at Mount Sharp, and found evidence of past conditions suitable for microbial life. To mark the anniversary, NASA is unveiling two new online tools that will bring the Mars experience to a new generation of explorers. “Mars Trek” is a free, web-based application that uses more than 40 years of Mars exploration data, to provide high-quality imagery of the planet’s features. "Experience Curiosity" is a 3-D simulation program that also uses real data, to take viewers along with Curiosity during the rover’s expeditions on the Martian surface. Since NASA’s robotic explorers became the first to study the Red Planet, advances in technology have enabled Mars exploration missions to continue making important scientific discoveries and pave the way for humans to reach Mars in the 2030s. Also, Newman visits composites tech facility, Future ISS crews, CubeSat Launch Initiative and Look, up in the sky!

Observed Mother- and Father-Child Interaction Differences in Families with Medically Assisted Reproduction-Conceived Twins and Singletons.

PubMed

Anderson, Kayla N; Rueter, Martha A; Connor, Jennifer J; Koh, Bibiana D

2017-12-01

Increased medically assisted reproduction (MAR) use to treat infertility has resulted in a growing twin birth rate. Little is known about parent-child relationships for twin relative to singleton children in middle childhood. This study fills this gap by examining parent-child relationships in 57 families with eighty 6- to 12-year-old MAR twin and singleton children using observational data (warm and supportive communication, control, and hostility). Nested ANCOVAs indicate that while mothers exhibit similar interactional behaviors toward twins and singletons, fathers have less optimum behaviors toward twins relative to singletons. Twins displayed less engaged behavior with mothers and fathers relative to singletons. Given the vitality of parent-child relationships for family and child adjustment, future studies should examine determinants and outcomes of twin-singleton relationship differences to bolster twins' and their families' functioning. © 2016 Family Process Institute.

Mars Rock Analysis Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-03-12

Paul Mahaffy (right), principal investigator for Curiosity's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) investigation at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, demonstrates how the SAM instrument drilled and captured rock samples on the surface of Mars at a news conference, Tuesday, March 12, 2013 at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The analysis of the rock sample collected shows ancient Mars could have supported living microbes. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Mars Trek: An Interactive Web Portal for Current and Future Missions to Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Law, E.; Day, B.

2017-01-01

NASA's Mars Trek (https://marstrek.jpl.nasa.gov) provides a web-based Portal and a suite of interactive visualization and analysis tools to enable mission planners, lunar scientists, and engineers to access mapped data products from past and current missions to Mars. During the past year, the capabilities and data served by Mars Trek have been significantly expanded beyond its original design as a public outreach tool. At the request of NASA's Science Mission Directorate and Human Exploration Operations Mission Directorate, Mars Trek's technology and capabilities are now being extended to support site selection and analysis activities for the first human missions to Mars.

Mars Trek: An Interactive Web Portal for Current and Future Missions to Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Law, E.; Day, B.

2017-09-01

NASA's Mars Trek (https://marstrek.jpl.nasa.gov) provides a web-based Portal and a suite of interactive visualization and analysis tools to enable mission planners, lunar scientists, and engineers to access mapped data products from past and current missions to Mars. During the past year, the capabilities and data served by Mars Trek have been significantly expanded beyond its original design as a public outreach tool. At the request of NASA's Science Mission Directorate and Human Exploration Operations Mission Directorate, Mars Trek's technology and capabilities are now being extended to support site selection and analysis activities for the first human missions to Mars.

HEDS-UP Mars Exploration Forum

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Budden, Nancy Ann (Editor); Duke, Micheal B. (Editor)

1998-01-01

In the early 1990s, Duke and Budden convened a series of workshops addressing mission rationale, exploration objectives, and key constraints and issues facing human crews on Mars. The focal point was "why" the U.S. should fly humans to Mars. In the mid-1990s, strategies for a Mars mission matured and evolved, driven formally by NASA Johnson Space Center's Office of Exploration. In 1997, NASA published a report capturing the current thinking: the NASA Mars Reference Mission. In the 1997-1998 school year, HEDS-UP sponsored six universities to conduct design studies on Mars exploration, using the Reference Mission as a basis for their work. The 1998 Mars Exploration Forum presents the results of these university studies, suggesting "how" we might explore Mars, in terms of specific technical components that would enable human missions to Mars. A primary objective of the HEDS-UP Mars Exploration Forum was to provide a forum for active interaction among NASA, industry, and the university community on the subject of human missions to Mars. NASA scientists and engineers were asked to present the state of exploration for Mars mission options currently under study. This status "snapshot" of current Mars strategies set the stage for the six HEDS-UP universities to present their final design study results. Finally, a panel of industry experts discussed readiness for human missions to Mars as it pertains to the aerospace industries and technologies. A robust poster session provided the backdrop for government-industry-university discussions and allowed for feedback to NASA on the Mars Reference Mission. The common thread woven through the two days was discussion of technologies, proven and emerging, that will be required to launch, land, and sustain human crews on the Red Planet. As this decade (and indeed this millenium) draws to a close, Mars will continue to loom in our sights as the next target for human space exploration. It is our hope that the efforts of the Mars

NASA Mars rover: a testbed for evaluating applications of covariance intersection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uhlmann, Jeffrey K.; Julier, Simon J.; Kamgar-Parsi, Behzad; Lanzagorta, Marco O.; Shyu, Haw-Jye S.

1999-07-01

The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) has spearheaded the development and application of Covariance Intersection (CI) for a variety of decentralized data fusion problems. Such problems include distributed control, onboard sensor fusion, and dynamic map building and localization. In this paper we describe NRL's development of a CI-based navigation system for the NASA Mars rover that stresses almost all aspects of decentralized data fusion. We also describe how this project relates to NRL's augmented reality, advanced visualization, and REBOT projects.

Mars Curiosity mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-04

NASA welcomed hundreds of children and accompanying adults to its INFINITY visitor center on Aug. 4, offering Mars-related activities that focused attention on the space agency's Curiosity mission to the Red Planet. Parents and children, such as Myron and Trey (age 3) Cummings, enjoyed exploring Mars using an interactive touch table. Midway through the day of activities, visitors in the Science on a Sphere auditorium also enjoyed a presentation on Mars and the Curiosity mission by Dr. Steven Williams, a NASA expert on Mars.

Mars Rover/Sample Return (MRSR) Mission: Mars Rover Technology Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

A return to the surface of Mars has long been an objective of NASA mission planners. The ongoing Mars Rover and Sample Return (MRSR) mission study represents the latest stage in that interest. As part of NASA's preparation for a possible MRSR mission, a technology planning workshop was held to attempt to define technology requirements, options, and preliminary plans for the principal areas of Mars rover technology. The proceedings of that workshop are presented.

Mars Curiosity mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-04

NASA welcomed hundreds of children and accompanying adults to its INFINITY visitor center on Aug. 4, offering Mars-related activities that focused attention on the space agency's Curiosity mission to the Red Planet. Parents and children, such as Myron and Trey (age 3) Cummings, enjoyed exploring Mars using an interactive touch table (top right photo). Midway through the day of activities, visitors in the Science on a Sphere auditorium also enjoyed a presentation on Mars and the Curiosity mission by Dr. Steven Williams, a NASA expert on Mars.

NASAs Evolvable Mars Campaign: Mars Moons Robotic Precursor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gernhardt, Michael L.; Abercromby, Andrew F. J.; Abell, Paul A.; Love, Stanley G.; Lee, David E.; Chappell, Steven P.; Howe, A. Scott; Friedensen, Victoria

2015-01-01

Human exploration missions to the moons of Mars are being considered within NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC) as an intermediate step for eventual human exploration and pioneering of the surface of Mars. A range of mission architectures is being evaluated in which human crews would explore one or both moons for as little as 14 days or for as long as 500 days with a variety of orbital and surface habitation and mobility options being considered. Relatively little is known about the orbital, surface, or subsurface characteristics of either moon. This makes them interesting but challenging destinations for human exploration missions during which crewmembers must be able to effectively conduct scientific exploration without being exposed to undue risks due to radiation, dust, micrometeoroids, or other hazards. A robotic precursor mission to one or both moons will be required to provide data necessary for the design and operation of subsequent human systems and for the identification and prioritization of scientific exploration objectives. This paper identifies and discusses considerations for the design of such a precursor mission based on current human mission architectures. Objectives of a Mars' moon precursor in support of human missions are expected to include: 1) identifying hazards on the surface and the orbital environment at up to 50-km distant retrograde orbits; 2) collecting data on physical characteristics for planning of detailed human proximity and surface operations; 3) performing remote sensing and in situ science investigations to refine and focus future human scientific activities; and 4) prospecting for in situ resource utilization. These precursor objectives can be met through a combination or remote sensing (orbital) and in-situ (surface) measurements. Analysis of spacecraft downlink signals using radio science techniques would measure the moon's mass, mass distribution, and gravity field, which will be necessary to enable trajectory planning

JPL Tech Works Mars 2020 Descent Stage

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-13

A technician works on the descent stage for NASA's Mars 2020 mission inside JPL's Spacecraft Assembly Facility. Mars 2020 is slated to carry NASA's next Mars rover to the Red Planet in July of 2020. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22342

Hydrogeology of Basins on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arvidson, Raymond E.

2001-01-01

This document summarizes the work accomplished under NASA Grant NAG5-3870. Emphasis was put on the development of the FIDO rover, a prototype for the twin-Mers which will be operating on the surface of Mars in 2004, specifically the primary work was the analysis of FIDO field trials. The grantees also analyzed VIKING Lander 1 XRFS and Pathfinder APXS data. Results show that the Viking site chemistry is consistent with an andesite, and the Pathfinder site is consistent with a basaltic andesite. The grantees also worked to demonstrate the capability to simulate annealing methods to apply to the inversion of remote sensing data. They performed an initial analyses of Sojourner engineering telemetry and imaging data. They performed initial analyses of Viking Lander Stereo Images, and of Hematite deposits in Terra Meridiani. They also acquired and analyzed the New Goldstone radar data.

Report on the survey for electrostatic discharges on Mars using NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arabshahi, S.; Majid, W.; Geldzahler, B.; Kocz, J.; Schulter, T.; White, L.

2017-12-01

Mars atmosphere has strong dust activity. It is suggested that the larger regional storms are capable of producing electric fields large enough to initiate electrostatic discharges. The storms have charging process similar to terrestrial dust devils and have hot cores and complicated vortex winds similar to terrestrial thunderstorms. However, due to uncertainties in our understanding of the electrical environment of the storms and absence of related in-situ measurements, the existence (or non-existence) of such electrostatic discharges on the planet is yet to be confirmed. Knowing about the electrical activity on Mars is essential for future human explorations of the planet. We have recently launched a long-term monitoring campaign at NASA's Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex (MDSCC) to search for powerful discharges on Mars. The search occurs during routine tracking of Mars orbiting spacecraft by Deep Space Network (DSN) radio telescope. In this presentation, we will report on the result of processing and analysis of the data from the first six months of our campaign.

Mars Equipment Transport System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sorrells, Cindy; Geiger, Michelle; Ohanlon, Sean; Pieloch, Stuart; Brogan, Nick

1993-01-01

Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Project 1 (ME4182) is a part of the NASA/University Advanced Design Program. Under this program, NASA allocates money and resources to students to be used in design work for a specified topic. The current topic is the exploration and colonization of Mars. The specific area in which we are to work is the transportation of the modules in which astronauts will live while on Mars. NASA is concerned about the weight of the module transferring system, as the shipping cost to Mars is quite expensive. NASA has specified that the weight of the system is to be minimized in order to reduce the shipping costs.

Mars Weather Map, Aug. 4, 2012

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-05

This global map of Mars was acquired on Aug. 4, 2012, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to forecast weather conditions for the entry, descent and landing of NASA Curiosity rover.

Mars Program Independent Assessment Team Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, Thomas; Arnold, James; Brackey, Thomas; Carr, Michael; Dwoyer, Douglas; Fogleman, Ronald; Jacobson, Ralph; Kottler, Herbert; Lyman, Peter; Maguire, Joanne

2000-01-01

The Mars Climate Orbiter failed to achieve Mars orbit on September 23, 1999. On December 3, 1999, Mars Polar Lander and two Deep Space 2 microprobes failed. As a result, the NASA Administrator established the Mars Program Independent Assessment Team (MPIAT) with the following charter: 1) Review and analyze successes and failures of recent Mars and Deep Space Missions which include: a) Mars Global Surveyor, b) Mars Climate Orbiter, c) Pathfinder, d) Mars Polar Lander, e) Deep Space 1, and f) Deep Space 2; 2) Examine the relationship between and among, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology (Caltech), NASA Headquarters, and industry partners; 3) Assess effectiveness of involvement of scientists; 4) Identify lessons learned from successes and failures; 5) Review revised Mars Surveyor Program to assure lessons learned are utilized; 6) Oversee Mars Polar Lander and Deep Space 2 failure reviews; and 7) Complete by March 15, 2000. In-depth reviews were conducted at NASA Headquarters, JPL, and Lockheed Martin Astronautics (LMA). Structured reviews, informal sessions with numerous Mars Program participants, and extensive debate and discussion within the MPIAT establish the basis for this report. The review process began on January 7, 2000, and concluded with a briefing to the NASA Administrator on March 14, 2000. This report represents the integrated views of the members of the MPIAT who are identified in the appendix. In total, three related reports have been produced: a summary report, this report entitled "Mars Program Independent Assessment Team Report," and the "Report on the Loss of the Mars Polar Lander and Deep Space 2 Missions".

Humans to Mars Summit 2014

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-22

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden delivers the opening keynote address at the Humans to Mars Summit on April 22, 2014 at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Administrator Bolden spoke of NASA's path to the human exploration of Mars during his remarks. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

A Reliable Service-Oriented Architecture for NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mak, Ronald; Walton, Joan; Keely, Leslie; Hehner, Dennis; Chan, Louise

2005-01-01

The Collaborative Information Portal (CIP) was enterprise software developed jointly by the NASA Ames Research Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for NASA's highly successful Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission. Both MER and CIP have performed far beyond their original expectations. Mission managers and engineers ran CIP inside the mission control room at JPL, and the scientists ran CIP in their laboratories, homes, and offices. All the users connected securely over the Internet. Since the mission ran on Mars time, CIP displayed the current time in various Mars and Earth time zones, and it presented staffing and event schedules with Martian time scales. Users could send and receive broadcast messages, and they could view and download data and image files generated by the rovers' instruments. CIP had a three-tiered, service-oriented architecture (SOA) based on industry standards, including J2EE and web services, and it integrated commercial off-the-shelf software. A user's interactions with the graphical interface of the CIP client application generated web services requests to the CIP middleware. The middleware accessed the back-end data repositories if necessary and returned results for these requests. The client application could make multiple service requests for a single user action and then present a composition of the results. This happened transparently, and many users did not even realize that they were connecting to a server. CIP performed well and was extremely reliable; it attained better than 99% uptime during the course of the mission. In this paper, we present overviews of the MER mission and of CIP. We show how CIP helped to fulfill some of the mission needs and how people used it. We discuss the criteria for choosing its architecture, and we describe how the developers made the software so reliable. CIP's reliability did not come about by chance, but was the result of several key design decisions. We conclude with some of the important

Mars Weather Map, 2008

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-04

This global map of Mars was acquired on Oct. 28, 2008, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA MRO. One global map is generated each day to forecast weather conditions for the entry, descent and landing of NASA Curiosity rover.

The NASA 2003 Mars Exploration Rover Panoramic Camera (Pancam) Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, J. F.; Squyres, S. W.; Herkenhoff, K. E.; Maki, J.; Schwochert, M.; Morris, R. V.; Athena Team

2002-12-01

The Panoramic Camera System (Pancam) is part of the Athena science payload to be launched to Mars in 2003 on NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rover missions. The Pancam imaging system on each rover consists of two major components: a pair of digital CCD cameras, and the Pancam Mast Assembly (PMA), which provides the azimuth and elevation actuation for the cameras as well as a 1.5 meter high vantage point from which to image. Pancam is a multispectral, stereoscopic, panoramic imaging system, with a field of regard provided by the PMA that extends across 360o of azimuth and from zenith to nadir, providing a complete view of the scene around the rover. Pancam utilizes two 1024x2048 Mitel frame transfer CCD detector arrays, each having a 1024x1024 active imaging area and 32 optional additional reference pixels per row for offset monitoring. Each array is combined with optics and a small filter wheel to become one "eye" of a multispectral, stereoscopic imaging system. The optics for both cameras consist of identical 3-element symmetrical lenses with an effective focal length of 42 mm and a focal ratio of f/20, yielding an IFOV of 0.28 mrad/pixel or a rectangular FOV of 16o\\x9D 16o per eye. The two eyes are separated by 30 cm horizontally and have a 1o toe-in to provide adequate parallax for stereo imaging. The cameras are boresighted with adjacent wide-field stereo Navigation Cameras, as well as with the Mini-TES instrument. The Pancam optical design is optimized for best focus at 3 meters range, and allows Pancam to maintain acceptable focus from infinity to within 1.5 meters of the rover, with a graceful degradation (defocus) at closer ranges. Each eye also contains a small 8-position filter wheel to allow multispectral sky imaging, direct Sun imaging, and surface mineralogic studies in the 400-1100 nm wavelength region. Pancam has been designed and calibrated to operate within specifications from -55oC to +5oC. An onboard calibration target and fiducial marks provide

Gale Crater is Low on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-02

Gale Crater on Mars, where NASA Curiosity rover is set to land, belongs to a family of large, very old craters shown here on this elevation map. The data come from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter instrument on NASA Mars Global Surveyor.

Mars Weather Map, Aug. 2, 2012

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-04

This global map of Mars was acquired on Aug. 2, 2012, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. One global map is generated each day to forecast weather conditions for the entry, descent and landing of NASA Curiosity.

Mars Science Laboratory's Descent Stage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This portion of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, called the descent stage, does its main work during the final few minutes before touchdown on Mars.

The descent stage will provide rocket-powered deceleration for a phase of the arrival at Mars after the phases using the heat shield and parachute. When it nears the surface, the descent stage will lower the rover on a bridle the rest of the way to the ground.

The Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being assembled and tested for launch in 2011.

This image was taken at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., which manages the Mars Science Laboratory Mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.

GRAIL Twins are Covered

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-08-25

Spacecraft technicians monitor the movement of a section of the clamshell-shaped Delta payload fairing as it encloses NASA twin Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory spacecraft at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Aug. 23, 2011.

Mars Exploration Rover, Vertical Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-12-15

An artist's concept portrays a NASA Mars Exploration Rover on the surface of Mars. Two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, will reach Mars in January 2004. Each has the mobility and toolkit to function as a robotic geologist. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA04928

Mars Exploration Rovers: 4 Years on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landis, Geoffrey A.

2008-01-01

This January, the Mars Exploration Rovers "Spirit" and "Opportunity" are starting their fifth year of exploring the surface of Mars, well over ten times their nominal 90-day design lifetime. This lecture discusses the Mars Exploration Rovers, presents the current mission status for the extended mission, some of the most results from the mission and how it is affecting our current view of Mars, and briefly presents the plans for the coming NASA missions to the surface of Mars and concepts for exploration with robots and humans into the next decade, and beyond.

Six Landing Sites on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

The landing site chosen for NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, at about 68 degrees north latitude, is much farther north than the sites where previous spacecraft have landed on Mars.

Color coding on this map indicates relative elevations based on data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor. Red is higher elevation; blue is lower elevation. In longitude, the map extends from 70 degrees (north) to minus 70 degrees (south).

Mars Rock Analysis Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-03-12

Paul Mahaffy, principal investigator for Curiosity's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) investigation at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, answer's a reporters question at a news conference, Tuesday, March 12, 2013 at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The news conference covered the findings that the analysis of the rock sample collected shows ancient Mars could have supported living microbes. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Humans to Mars Summit 2014

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-22

Michael Gazarik, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Technology gives a short presentation on NASA's human exploration path to Mars during a panel discussion moderated by PBS NewsHour's Miles O'Brien at the Humans to Mars Summit on April 22, 2014 at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Humans to Mars Summit 2014

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-22

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden answers questions from the audience after giving the opening keynote address at the Humans to Mars Summit on April 22, 2014 at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Administrator Bolden spoke of NASA's path to the human exploration of Mars during his remarks. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Both MarCO Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-29

Engineer Joel Steinkraus stands with both of the Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The one on the left is folded up the way it will be stowed on its rocket; the one on the right has its solar panels fully deployed, along with its high-gain antenna on top. The MarCOs will be the first CubeSats -- a kind of modular, mini-satellite -- flown in deep space. They're designed to fly along behind NASA's InSight lander on its cruise to Mars. If they make the journey, they will test a relay of data about InSight's entry, descent and landing back to Earth. Though InSight's mission will not depend on the success of the MarCOs, they will be a test of how CubeSats can be used in deep space. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22319

Known Locations of Carbonate Rocks on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

Green dots show the locations of orbital detections of carbonate-bearing rocks on Mars, determined by analysis of targeted observations by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) acquired through January 2008. The spectrometer is on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

The base map is color-coded global topography (red is high, blue is low) overlain on mosaicked daytime thermal infrared images. The topography data are from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor. The thermal infrared imagery is from the Thermal Emission Imaging System camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter.

The CRISM team, led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., includes expertise from universities, government agencies and small businesses in the United States and abroad. Arizona State University, Tempe, operates the Thermal Emission Imaging System, which the university developed in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey projects for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the orbiters.

MarCO Being Tested in Sunlight

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-29

Engineer Joel Steinkraus uses sunlight to test the solar arrays on one of the Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The MarCOs will be the first CubeSats -- a kind of modular, mini-satellite -- flown into deep space. They're designed to fly along behind NASA's InSight lander on its cruise to Mars. If they make the journey to Mars, they will test a relay of data about InSight's entry, descent and landing back to Earth. Though InSight's mission will not depend on the success of the MarCOs, they will be a test of how CubeSats can be used in deep space. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22317

Modeling to Mars: a NASA Model Based Systems Engineering Pathfinder Effort

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phojanamongkolkij, Nipa; Lee, Kristopher A.; Miller, Scott T.; Vorndran, Kenneth A.; Vaden, Karl R.; Ross, Eric P.; Powell, Bobby C.; Moses, Robert W.

2017-01-01

The NASA Engineering Safety Center (NESC) Systems Engineering (SE) Technical Discipline Team (TDT) initiated the Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Pathfinder effort in FY16. The goals and objectives of the MBSE Pathfinder include developing and advancing MBSE capability across NASA, applying MBSE to real NASA issues, and capturing issues and opportunities surrounding MBSE. The Pathfinder effort consisted of four teams, with each team addressing a particular focus area. This paper focuses on Pathfinder team 1 with the focus area of architectures and mission campaigns. These efforts covered the timeframe of February 2016 through September 2016. The team was comprised of eight team members from seven NASA Centers (Glenn Research Center, Langley Research Center, Ames Research Center, Goddard Space Flight Center IV&V Facility, Johnson Space Center, Marshall Space Flight Center, and Stennis Space Center). Collectively, the team had varying levels of knowledge, skills and expertise in systems engineering and MBSE. The team applied their existing and newly acquired system modeling knowledge and expertise to develop modeling products for a campaign (Program) of crew and cargo missions (Projects) to establish a human presence on Mars utilizing In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). Pathfinder team 1 developed a subset of modeling products that are required for a Program System Requirement Review (SRR)/System Design Review (SDR) and Project Mission Concept Review (MCR)/SRR as defined in NASA Procedural Requirements. Additionally, Team 1 was able to perform and demonstrate some trades and constraint analyses. At the end of these efforts, over twenty lessons learned and recommended next steps have been identified.

First Image from MarCO-B

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-15

The first image captured by one of NASA's Mars Cube One (MarCO) CubeSats. The image, which shows both the CubeSat's unfolded high-gain antenna at right and the Earth and its moon in the center, was acquired by MarCO-B on May 9. MarCO is a pair of small spacecraft accompanying NASA's InSight (Interior Investigations Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) lander. Together, MarCO-A and MarCO-B are the first CubeSats ever sent to deep space. InSight is the first mission to ever explore Mars' deep interior. If the MarCO CubeSats make the entire journey to Mars, they will attempt to relay data about InSight back to Earth as the lander enters the Martian atmosphere and lands. MarCO will not collect any science, but are intended purely as a technology demonstration. They could serve as a pathfinder for future CubeSat missions. An annotated version is available at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22323

Microreactor System Design for a NASA In Situ Propellant Production Plant on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

TeGrotenhuis, W. E.; Wegeng, R. S.; Vanderwiel, D. P.; Whyatt, G. A.; Viswanathan, V. V.; Schielke, K. P.; Sanders, G. B.; Peters, T. A.; Nicholson, Leonard S. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The NASA In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) program is planning near-term missions to Mars that will include chemical processes for converting the carbon dioxide (CO2) and possibly water from the Martian environment to propellants, oxygen, and other useful chemicals. The use of indigenous resources reduces the size and weight of the payloads from Earth significantly, representing enormous cost savings that make human exploration of Mars affordable. Extraterrestrial chemical processing plants will need to be compact, lightweight, highly efficient under reduced gravity, and extraordinarily reliable for long periods. Microchemical and thermal systems represent capability for dramatic reduction in size and weight, while offering high reliability through massive parallelization. In situ propellant production (ISPP), one aspect of the ISRU program, involves collecting and pressurizing atmospheric CO2, conversion reactions, chemical separations, heat exchangers, and cryogenic storage. A preliminary system design of an ISPP plant based on microtechnology has demonstrated significant size, weight, and energy efficiency gains over the current NASA baseline. Energy management is a strong driver for Mars-based processes, not only because energy is a scarce resource, but because heat rejection is problematic; the low pressure environment makes convective heat transfer ineffective. Energy efficiency gains are largely achieved in the microchemical plant through extensive heat recuperation and energy cascading, which has a small size and weight penalty because the added micro heat exchangers are small. This leads to additional size and weight gains by reducing the required area of waste heat radiators. The microtechnology-based ISPP plant is described in detail, including aspects of pinch analysis for optimizing the heat exchanger network. Three options for thermochemical compression Of CO2 from the Martian atmosphere, adsorption, absorption, and cryogenic freezing, are presented

Mars Ice Age, Simulated

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

December 17, 2003

This simulated view shows Mars as it might have appeared during the height of a possible ice age in geologically recent time.

Of all Solar System planets, Mars has the climate most like that of Earth. Both are sensitive to small changes in orbit and tilt. During a period about 2.1 million to 400,000 years ago, increased tilt of Mars' rotational axis caused increased solar heating at the poles. A new study using observations from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey orbiters concludes that this polar warming caused mobilization of water vapor and dust into the atmosphere, and buildup of a surface deposit of ice and dust down to about 30 degrees latitude in both hemispheres. That is the equivalent of the southern Unites States or Saudi Arabia on Earth. Mars has been in an interglacial period characterized by less axial tilt for about the last 300,000 years. The ice-rich surface deposit has been degrading in the latitude zone of 30 degrees to 60 degrees as water-ice returns to the poles.

In this illustration prepared for the December 18, 2003, cover of the journal Nature, the simulated surface deposit is superposed on a topography map based on altitude measurements by Global Surveyor and images from NASA's Viking orbiters of the 1970s.

Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey are managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, for the NASA Office of Space Science, Washington.

Mars Helicopter (Artist's Concept)

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-25

This artist concept shows the Mars Helicopter, a small, autonomous rotorcraft, which will travel with NASA's Mars 2020 rover mission, currently scheduled to launch in July 2020, to demonstrate the viability and potential of heavier-than-air vehicles on the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22460

Kelly during Twins Study Experiment Operations

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-09-24

ISS045E028258 (09/24/2015) --- NASA astronaut Scott Kelly gives himself a flu shot for an ongoing study on the human immune system. The vaccination is part of NASA’s Twins Study, a compilation of multiple investigations that take advantage of a unique opportunity to study identical twin astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly, while Scott spends a year aboard the International Space Station and Mark remains on Earth.

Mars Weather Map, Aug. 5

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-10

This global map of Mars was acquired on Aug. 5, 2012, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA MRO. One global map is generated each day to forecast weather conditions for the entry, descent and landing of NASA Curiosity rover.

NASA’s Mars Lander Launches

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-05

NASA’s Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) was launched May 5 on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in Central California. NASA also flew a technology demonstration called Mars Cube One (MarCO) on the Atlas V to separately go to Mars. NASA has a long and successful track record at Mars. InSight will drill into the Red Planet to study the crust, mantle and core of Mars. It will help scientists understand the formation and early evolution of all rocky planets, including Earth.

Humans to Mars Summit 2014

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-22

Miles O'Brien, science correspondant for PBS NewsHour, left, leads a panel discussion on Mars exploration with William Gerstenmaier, NASA Associatate Administrator for Human Explorations and Operations, center, and Michael Gazarik, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Technology, left, at the Humans to Mars Summit on April 22, 2014 at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Intrepid Crater on Mars Stereo

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-11-18

Intrepid crater on Mars carries the name of the lunar module of NASA Apollo 12 mission, which landed on Earth moon Nov. 19, 1969. NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity recorded this stereo view on Nov. 11, 2010. 3D glasses are necessary.

Operationalizing the 21st Century Learning Skills Framework for the NASA Mission to Mars Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Burgess; Research, MSI; Evaluation Team; Interactive Videoconferences Teamlt/p>, MSI

2013-06-01

Internal evaluators working with the NASA Mission to Mars program, an out-of-school collaborative videoconferencing program at the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago (MSI), developed an observation protocol to collect evidence about the collaborative learning opportunities offered by the program’s unique technology. Details about the protocol’s development are discussed, along with results of the pilot observations of the program.

Mars Topography

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-01-17

These maps are global false-color topographic views of Mars at different orientations from NASA Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter MOLA. The maps are orthographic projections that contain over 200,000,000 points and about 5,000,000 altimetric crossovers.

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

Ken Edgett, principal investigator, MAHLI Camera, Mars Exploration Program, discusses what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers during a “Mars Up Close” panel discussion, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Middleware and Web Services for the Collaborative Information Portal of NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sinderson, Elias; Magapu, Vish; Mak, Ronald

2004-01-01

We describe the design and deployment of the middleware for the Collaborative Information Portal (CIP), a mission critical J2EE application developed for NASA's 2003 Mars Exploration Rover mission. CIP enabled mission personnel to access data and images sent back from Mars, staff and event schedules, broadcast messages and clocks displaying various Earth and Mars time zones. We developed the CIP middleware in less than two years time usins cutting-edge technologies, including EJBs, servlets, JDBC, JNDI and JMS. The middleware was designed as a collection of independent, hot-deployable web services, providing secure access to back end file systems and databases. Throughout the middleware we enabled crosscutting capabilities such as runtime service configuration, security, logging and remote monitoring. This paper presents our approach to mitigating the challenges we faced, concluding with a review of the lessons we learned from this project and noting what we'd do differently and why.

How Mars is losing its atmosphere on This Week @NASA – November 6, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-11-06

New findings by NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission indicate that solar wind is currently stripping away the equivalent of about 1/4 pound of gas every second from the Martian atmosphere. MAVEN tracked a series of dramatic solar storms passing through the Martian atmosphere in March and found the loss was accelerated. This could suggest that violent solar activity in the distant past may have played a key role in the transition of the Martian climate from an early, warm and wet environment that might have supported surface life, to the cold, arid planet Mars is today. Also, 15 Years on space station, and counting!, Spacewalk for space station maintenance, NASA seeking future astronauts, Commercial Crew access tower progress and First SLS flight engine placed for testing!

Review of NASA approach to space radiation risk assessments for Mars exploration.

PubMed

Cucinotta, Francis A

2015-02-01

Long duration space missions present unique radiation protection challenges due to the complexity of the space radiation environment, which includes high charge and energy particles and other highly ionizing radiation such as neutrons. Based on a recommendation by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, a 3% lifetime risk of exposure-induced death for cancer has been used as a basis for risk limitation by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for low-Earth orbit missions. NASA has developed a risk-based approach to radiation exposure limits that accounts for individual factors (age, gender, and smoking history) and assesses the uncertainties in risk estimates. New radiation quality factors with associated probability distribution functions to represent the quality factor's uncertainty have been developed based on track structure models and recent radiobiology data for high charge and energy particles. The current radiation dose limits are reviewed for spaceflight and the various qualitative and quantitative uncertainties that impact the risk of exposure-induced death estimates using the NASA Space Cancer Risk (NSCR) model. NSCR estimates of the number of "safe days" in deep space to be within exposure limits and risk estimates for a Mars exploration mission are described.

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

John Grant, geologist and long-term planner, Curiosity Mars Science Laboratory, discusses what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers during a “Mars Up Close” panel discussion, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Water Flowing on Mars Today on This Week @NASA – October 2, 2015

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-10-02

A major scientific discovery was announced by NASA at a Sept. 28 news conference. From its vantage point high above the Martian surface, NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft has found the strongest evidence yet, that under certain circumstances, liquid water has been found on Mars. Researchers say an imaging spectrometer on MRO detected signatures of hydrated minerals on slopes where downhill streaks, known as Recurring Slope Lineae (RSL) are seen. In the past, RSL flows have been described as possibly related to liquid water. But the new findings of hydrated minerals is key evidence. Hydrated salts can lower the freezing point of liquid brine – and produce liquid water. Also, Life beyond Earth in the next decade?, “The Martian” screening event, Cargo ship departs space station, New cargo ship delivers to space station, Rare double celestial treat and Espacio a Tierra!

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

Guest attending the National Geographic “Mars Up Close” panel discussion, look at full scale models of the Spirit/Opportunity, left, and Curiosity, Mars rovers, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. Guest listened to a panel of distinguished space scientists and Mars experts involved in current Mars exploration that shared what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Locations of Ice-Exposing Fresh Craters on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-12-10

This map of Mars indicates locations of new craters that have excavated ice blue and those that have not red. Albedo information comes from NASA Mars Odyssey orbiter, and the map comes from NASA Mars Global Surveyor orbiter.

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

Dr. Jim Green, NASA‘s Planetary Science Division Director and Head of Mars Program, discusses what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers during a “Mars Up Close” panel discussion, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Alternate: MarCO Being Tested in Sunlight

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-29

Engineer Joel Steinkraus uses sunlight to test the solar arrays on one of the Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The MarCOs will be the first CubeSats -- a kind of modular, mini-satellite -- flown into deep space. They're designed to fly along behind NASA's InSight lander on its cruise to Mars. If they make the journey, they will test a relay of data about InSight's entry, descent and landing back to Earth. Though InSight's mission will not depend on the success of the MarCOs, they will be a test of how CubeSats can be used in deep space. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22318

Frost on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This image shows bluish-white frost seen on the Martian surface near NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander. The image was taken by the lander's Surface Stereo Imager on the 131st Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Oct. 7, 2008). Frost is expected to continue to appear in images as fall, then winter approach Mars' northern plains.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Examining Mars with SPICE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acton, Charles H.; Bachman, Nathaniel J.; Bytof, Jeff A.; Semenov, Boris V.; Taber, William; Turner, F. Scott; Wright, Edward D.

1999-01-01

The International Mars Conference highlights the wealth of scientific data now and soon to be acquired from an international armada of Mars-bound robotic spacecraft. Underlying the planning and interpretation of these scientific observations around and upon Mars are ancillary data and associated software needed to deal with trajectories or locations, instrument pointing, timing and Mars cartographic models. The NASA planetary community has adopted the SPICE system of ancillary data standards and allied tools to fill the need for consistent, reliable access to these basic data and a near limitless range of derived parameters. After substantial rapid growth in its formative years, the SPICE system continues to evolve today to meet new needs and improve ease of use. Adaptations to handle landers and rovers were prototyped on the Mars pathfinder mission and will next be used on Mars '01-'05. Incorporation of new methods to readily handle non-inertial reference frames has vastly extended the capability and simplified many computations. A translation of the SPICE Toolkit software suite to the C language has just been announced. To further support cartographic calculations associated with Mars exploration the SPICE developers at JPL have recently been asked by NASA to work with cartographers to develop standards and allied software for storing and accessing control net and shape model data sets; these will be highly integrated with existing SPICE components. NASA specifically supports the widest possible utilization of SPICE capabilities throughout the international space science community. With NASA backing the Russian Space Agency and Russian Academy of Science adopted the SPICE standards for the Mars 96 mission. The SPICE ephemeris component will shortly become the international standard for agencies using the Deep Space Network. U.S. and European scientists hope that ESA will employ SPICE standards on the Mars Express mission. SPICE is an open set of standards, and

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

Pan Conrad, deputy principal investigator, Sample Analysis at Mars team, NASA‘s Goddard Space Flight Center, discusses what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers during a “Mars Up Close” panel discussion, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Mars Rover Concept Vehicle

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-05

Crowds gather around the scientifically-themed Mars rover concept vehicle at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. It is a part of the "Summer of Mars" program designed to provide a survey of NASA's studies of the Red Planet. The builders of the rover, Parker Brothers Concepts of Port Canaveral, Florida, incorporated input into its design from NASA subject matter experts.

Mars Rock Analysis Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-03-12

David Blake, principal investigator for Curiosity's Chemistry and Mineralogy investigation at NASA's Ames Research Center in Calif., speaks at a news conference presenting findings of the Curiosity rover's analysis of the first sample of rock powder collected on Mars, Tuesday, March 12, 2013 in Washington. The rock sample collected shows ancient Mars could have supported living microbes. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Image Relayed by MAVEN Mars Orbiter from Curiosity Mars Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-10

The first demonstration of NASA MAVEN Mars orbiter capability to relay data from a Mars surface mission, on Nov. 6, 2014, included this image, taken Oct. 23, 2014, by Curiosity Navigation Camera, showing part of Pahrump Hills outcrop.

Nuclear Thermal Rocket/Vehicle Design Options for Future NASA Missions to the Moon and Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Borowski, Stanley K.; Corban, Robert R.; Mcguire, Melissa L.; Beke, Erik G.

1995-01-01

The nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) provides a unique propulsion capability to planners/designers of future human exploration missions to the Moon and Mars. In addition to its high specific impulse (approximately 850-1000 s) and engine thrust-to-weight ratio (approximately 3-10), the NTR can also be configured as a 'dual mode' system capable of generating electrical power for spacecraft environmental systems, communications, and enhanced stage operations (e.g., refrigeration for long-term liquid hydrogen storage). At present the Nuclear Propulsion Office (NPO) is examining a variety of mission applications for the NTR ranging from an expendable, single-burn, trans-lunar injection (TLI) stage for NASA's First Lunar Outpost (FLO) mission to all propulsive, multiburn, NTR-powered spacecraft supporting a 'split cargo-piloted sprint' Mars mission architecture. Each application results in a particular set of requirements in areas such as the number of engines and their respective thrust levels, restart capability, fuel operating temperature and lifetime, cryofluid storage, and stage size. Two solid core NTR concepts are examined -- one based on NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application) derivative reactor (NDR) technology, and a second concept which utilizes a ternary carbide 'twisted ribbon' fuel form developed by the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The NDR and CIS concepts have an established technology database involving significant nuclear testing at or near representative operating conditions. Integrated systems and mission studies indicate that clusters of two to four 15 to 25 klbf NDR or CIS engines are sufficient for most of the lunar and Mars mission scenarios currently under consideration. This paper provides descriptions and performance characteristics for the NDR and CIS concepts, summarizes NASA's First Lunar Outpost and Mars mission scenarios, and describes characteristics for representative cargo and piloted vehicles compatible with a

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Observes Changes

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-02-08

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been observing Mars in sharp detail for more than a decade, enabling it to document many types of changes, such as the way winds alter the appearance of this recent impact site. The space-rock impact that created this blast zone occurred sometime between September 2005 and February 2006, as bracketed by observations made with the Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft. The location is between two large volcanos, named Ascraeus Mons and Pavonis Mons, in a dusty area of the Tharsis region of Mars. During the period from 2007 to 2012, winds blowing through the pass between the volcanoes darkened some regions and brightened others, probably by removing and depositing dust. The view covers an area about 1.0 mile (1.6 kilometers) across, at 7 degrees north latitude, 248 degrees east longitude. North is toward the top. An animation is availalble at http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21267

Mars Science Laboratory Press Conference

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-07-22

NASA chief scientist, Dr. Waleed Abdalati, speaks at a Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) press conference at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Friday, July 22, 2011 in Washington. The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), or Curiosity, is scheduled to launch late this year from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and land in August 2012. Curiosity is twice as long and more than five times as heavy as previous Mars rovers. The rover will study whether the landing region at Gale crater had favorable environmental conditions for supporting microbial life and for preserving clues about whether life ever existed. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

A Martian Telecommunications Network: UHF Relay Support of the Mars Exploration Rovers by the Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Odyssey, and Mars Express Orbiters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, Charles D., Jr.; Barbieri, A.; Brower, E.; Estabrook, P.; Gibbs, R.; Horttor, R.; Ludwinski, J.; Mase, R.; McCarthy, C.; Schmidt, R.;

Mars Science Laboratory Rover Taking Shape

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-11-19

This image taken in August 2008 in a clean room at NASA JPL, Pasadena, Calif., shows NASA next Mars rover, the Mars Science Laboratory, in the course of its assembly, before additions of its arm, mast, laboratory instruments and other equipment.

Aeroshell for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This image from July 2008 shows the aeroshell for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory while it was being worked on by spacecraft technicians at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company near Denver.

This hardware was delivered in early fall of 2008 to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., where the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being assembled and tested.

The aeroshell encapsulates the mission's rover and descent stage during the journey from Earth to Mars and shields them from the intense heat of friction with that upper atmosphere during the initial portion of descent.

The aeroshell has two main parts: the backshell, which is on top in this image and during the descent, and the heat shield, on the bottom. The heat shield in this image is an engineering unit for testing. The heat shield to be used in flight will be substituted later. The heat shield has a diameter of about 15 feet. For comparison, the heat shields for NASA's Mars Exploraton Rovers Spirit and Opportunity were 8.5 feet and the heat shields for the Apollo capsules that protected astronauts returning to Earth from the moon were just under 13 feet.

In addition to protecting the Mars Science Laboratory rover, the backshell provides structural support for the descent stage's parachute and sky crane, a system that will lower the rover to a soft landing on the surface of Mars. The backshell for the Mars Science Laboratory is made of an aluminum honeycomb structure sandwiched between graphite-epoxy face sheets. It is covered with a thermal protection system composed of a cork/silicone super light ablator material that originated with the Viking landers of the 1970s. This ablator material has been used on the heat shields of all NASA Mars landers in the past, but this mission is the first Mars mission using it on the backshell.

The heat shield for Mars Science Laboratory's flight will use tiles made of phenolic impregnated carbon ablator. The engineering unit in

In-Space Transportation for NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Percy, Thomas K.; McGuire, Melissa; Polsgrove, Tara

2015-01-01

As the nation embarks on a new and bold journey to Mars, significant work is being done to determine what that mission and those architectural elements will look like. The Evolvable Mars Campaign, or EMC, is being evaluated as a potential approach to getting humans to Mars. Built on the premise of leveraging current technology investments and maximizing element commonality to reduce cost and development schedule, the EMC transportation architecture is focused on developing the elements required to move crew and equipment to Mars as efficiently and effectively as possible both from a performance and a programmatic standpoint. Over the last 18 months the team has been evaluating potential options for those transportation elements. One of the key aspects of the EMC is leveraging investments being made today in missions like the Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) mission using derived versions of the Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) propulsion systems and coupling them with other chemical propulsion elements that maximize commonality across the architecture between both transportation and Mars operations elements. This paper outlines the broad trade space being evaluated including the different technologies being assessed for transportation elements and how those elements are assembled into an architecture. Impacts to potential operational scenarios at Mars are also investigated. Trades are being made on the size and power level of the SEP vehicle for delivering cargo as well as the size of the chemical propulsion systems and various mission aspects including Inspace assembly and sequencing. Maximizing payload delivery to Mars with the SEP vehicle will better support the operational scenarios at Mars by enabling the delivery of landers and habitation elements that are appropriately sized for the mission. The purpose of this investigation is not to find the solution but rather a suite of solutions with potential application to the challenge of sending cargo and crew to Mars

Fast Track Lunar NTR Systems Assessment for NASA's First Lunar Outpost and Its Evolvability to Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Borowski, Stanley K.; Alexander, Stephen W.

1995-01-01

Integrated systems and missions studies are presented for an evolutionary lunar-to-Mars space transportation system (STS) based on nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) technology. A 'standardized' set of engine and stage components are identified and used in a 'building block' fashion to configure a variety of piloted and cargo, lunar and Mars vehicles. The reference NTR characteristics include a thrust of 50 thousand pounds force (klbf), specific impulse (I(sub sp)) of 900 seconds, and an engine thrust-to-weight ratio of 4. 3. For the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) First Lunar Outpost (FLO) mission, and expendable NTR stage powered by two such engines can deliver approximately 96 metric tonnes (t) to trans-lunar injection (TLI) conditions for an initial mass in low Earth orbit (IMLEO) of approximately 198 t compared to 250 t for a cryogenic chemical system. The stage liquid hydrogen (LH2) tank has a diameter, length, and capacity of 10 m, 14.5 m and 66 t, respectively. By extending the stage length and LH2 capacity to approximately 20 m and 96 t, a single launch Mars cargo vehicle could deliver to an elliptical Mars parking orbit a 63 t Mars excursion vehicle (MEV) with a 45 t surface payload. Three 50 klbf engines and the two standardized LH2 tanks developed for the lunar and Mars cargo vehicles are used to configure the vehicles supporting piloted Mars missions as early as 2010. The 'modular' NTR vehicle approach forms the basis for an efficient STS able to handle the needs of a wide spectrum of lunar and Mars missions.

Mars Up Close

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

Marc Kaufman, space news writer, National Geographic and The Washington Post, and author of the new National Geographic book “Mars Up Close”, kicks off a panel discussion of Mars experts involved in current Mars exploration, Tuesday, August 5, 2014, at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington. The panelist shared what we’ve learned from Curiosity and the other Mars rovers surveying the red planet. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Estimated Radiation on Mars, Hits per Cell Nucleus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

This global map of Mars shows estimates for amounts of high-energy-particle cosmic radiation reaching the surface, a serious health concern for any future human exploration of the planet.

The estimates are based on cosmic-radiation measurements made on the way to Mars by the Mars radiation environment experiment, an instrument on NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft, plus information about Mars' surface elevations from the laser altimeter instrument on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor. The areas of Mars expected to have least radiation are where elevation is lowest, because those areas have more atmosphere above them to block out some of the radiation. Earth's thick atmosphere shields us from most cosmic radiation, but Mars has a much thinner atmosphere than Earth does.

Colors in the map refer to the estimated average number of times per year each cell nucleus in a human there would be hit by a high-energy cosmic ray particle. The range is generally from two hits (color-coded green), a moderate risk level, to eight hits (coded red), a high risk level.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey and Mars Global Surveyor missions for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington D.C. The Mars radiation environment experiment was developed by NASA's Johnson Space Center. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for Odyssey, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Mars Science Laboratory Rover Taking Shape

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This image taken in August 2008 in a clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., shows NASA's next Mars rover, the Mars Science Laboratory, in the course of its assembly, before additions of its arm, mast, laboratory instruments and other equipment.

The rover is about 9 feet wide and 10 feet long.

Viewing progress on the assembly are, from left: NASA Associate Administrator for Science Ed Weiler, California Institute of Technology President Jean-Lou Chameau, JPL Director Charles Elachi, and JPL Associate Director for Flight Projects and Mission Success Tom Gavin.

JPL, a division of Caltech, manages the Mars Science Laboratory project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

Human Mars Lander Design for NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Polsgrove, Tara; Chapman, Jack; Sutherlin, Steve; Taylor, Brian; Fabisinski, Leo; Collins, Tim; Cianciolo Dwyer, Alicia; Samareh, Jamshid; Robertson, Ed; Studak, Bill;

A Martian Meteorite for Mars 2020

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-13

Rohit Bhartia of NASA's Mars 2020 mission holds a slice of a meteorite scientists have determined came from Mars. This slice will likely be used here on Earth for testing a laser instrument for NASA's Mars 2020 rover; a separate slice will go to Mars on the rover. Martian meteorites are believed to be the result of impacts to the Red Planet's surface, resulting in rock being blasted into the atmosphere. After traveling through space for eons, some of these rocks entered Earth's atmosphere. Scientists determine whether they are true Martian meteorites based on their rock and noble gas chemistry and mineralogy. The gases trapped in these meteorites bear the unique fingerprint of the Martian atmosphere, as recorded by NASA's Viking mission in 1976. The rock types also show clear signs of igneous processing not possible on smaller bodies, such as asteroids. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22245

Lowering SAM Instrument into Curiosity Mars Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-01-18

In this photograph, technicians and engineers inside a clean room at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., position NASA Sample Analysis at Mars SAM above the mission Mars rover, Curiosity, for installing the instrument.

Installing SAM Instrument into Curiosity Mars Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-01-18

In this photograph, technicians and engineers inside a clean room at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., position NASA Sample Analysis at Mars SAM above the mission Mars rover, Curiosity, for installing the instrument.

Mars 2020 MOXIE Laboratory and Principal Investigator

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-07-15

One investigation on NASA's Mars 2020 rover will extract oxygen from the Martian atmosphere. It is called MOXIE, for Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment. In this image, MOXIE Principal Investigator Michael Hecht, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, is in the MOXIE development laboratory at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California. Mars' atmosphere is mostly carbon dioxide. Demonstration of the capability for extracting oxygen from it, under Martian environmental conditions, will be a pioneering step toward how humans on Mars will use the Red Planet's natural resources. Oxygen can be used in the rocket http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20761

Mars Sample Return in the Context of the Mars Exploration Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garvin, J. B.

2002-05-01

The scientific priorities developed for the scientific exploration of Mars by the Mars Exploration Program Assessment Group [MEPAG, 2001] and as part of the Committee on Planetary and Lunar Exploration (COMPLEX) recent assessment of the NASA Mars Exploration Program [COMPLEX, 2001] all involve a campaign of Mars Sample Return (MSR) missions. Such MSR missions are required to address in a definitive manner most of the highest priority investigations within overarching science themes which include: (1) biological potential (past or present); (2) climate (past or present); (3) solid planet (surface and interior, past and present); (4) knowledge necessary to prepare for eventual human exploration of Mars. NASA's current Mars Exploration Program (MEP) contains specific flight mission developments and plans only for the present decade (2002-2010), including a cascade of missions designed to set the stage for an inevitable campaign of MSR missions sometime in the second decade (2011-2020). Studies are presently underway to examine implementation options for a first MSR mission in which at least 500g of martian materials (including lithic fragments) would be returned to Earth from a landing vicinity carefully selected on the basis of the comprehensive orbital and surface-based remote sensing campaign that is ongoing (MGS, ODYSSEY) and planned (MER, MRO, 2009 MSL). Key to the first of several MSR's is attention to risk, cost, and enabling technologies that facilitate access to most scientifically-compelling martian materials at very local scales. The context for MSR's in the upcoming decade remains a vital part of NASA's scientific strategy for Mars exploration.

Mars Surface Habitability Options

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Howe, A. Scott; Simon, Matthew; Smitherman, David; Howard, Robert; Toups, Larry; Hoffman, Stephen J.

2015-01-01

This paper reports on current habitability concepts for an Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC) prepared by the NASA Human Spaceflight Architecture Team (HAT). For many years NASA has investigated alternative human Mars missions, examining different mission objectives, trajectories, vehicles, and technologies; the combinations of which have been referred to as reference missions or architectures. At the highest levels, decisions regarding the timing and objectives for a human mission to Mars continue to evolve while at the lowest levels, applicable technologies continue to advance. This results in an on-going need for assessments of alternative system designs such as the habitat, a significant element in any human Mars mission scenario, to provide meaningful design sensitivity characterizations to assist decision-makers regarding timing, objectives, and technologies. As a subset of the Evolvable Mars Campaign activities, the habitability team builds upon results from past studies and recommends options for Mars surface habitability compatible with updated technologies.

New NASA Technologies for Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calle, Carlos I.

2015-01-01

NASA is developing new technologies to enable planetary exploration. NASA's Space Launch System is an advance vehicle for exploration beyond LEO. Robotic explorers like the Mars Science Laboratory are exploring Mars, making discoveries that will make possible the future human exploration of the planet. In this presentation, we report on technologies being developed at NASA KSC for planetary exploration.

Musical Interests and Talent: Twin Jazz Musicians and Twin Studies/Twin Research: Loss of a Preterm Multiple; Conjoined Twin Conception; Depression in Fathers of Twins; Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome/Twin News: High-Achieving Twins; Twin Children of a Tennis Star; Conjoined Twin Separation; Twin Delivery to a Giant Panda.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2017-12-01

Findings from twin studies of musical interests and talent are reviewed as a backdrop to the lives and careers of twin jazz musicians, Peter and Will Anderson. The Anderson twins exemplify many aspects of twin research, namely their matched musical abilities, shared musical interests, and common career. This overview is followed by reviews of studies and case reports of bereavement in families who have lost a preterm multiple birth infant, the conception of conjoined twins following in vitro fertilization (IVF), depression in fathers of twins, and twin-to-twin transfusion incidence in monochorionic-diamniotic IVF twin pairs. Twins highlighted in the media include high-achieving identical female twins with nearly identical academic standing, tennis star Roger Federer's two sets of identical twin children, surgical separation of craniopagus conjoined twins, and the rare delivery of twins to a 23-year-old giant panda.

Planetary protection requirements for orbiter and netlander elements of the CNES/NASA Mars sample return mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Debus, A.

In the framework of Mars exploration, particularly for missions dedicated to the search for life or for traces of ancient forms of life, NASA and CNES have decided to join their efforts in order to build a Mars sample return mission. Taking into account article IX of the OUTER SPACE TREATY (Treaty on principles governing the activities of states in the exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial, referenced 610 UNTS 205 - resolution 2222(XXI) of December 1966, ratified in London / Washington January 27, 1967) and in order to comply with the COSPAR planetary protection recommendations, a common planetary protection program has to be established. Mars in-situ experimentations are limited by the size and the mass of the instruments necessary to perform exobiology investigations and, consequently, it appears that the best way to conduct such experiments is to bring back Mars samples to Earth. A sample return mission enables the use of a very large number of instruments and analysis protocols, giving exobiologists the best chance to find living entities or organic compounds related to life. Such a mission is complicated from a planetary protection point of view, it combines constraints for the protection of both the Mars environment as well as Earth, including the preservation of samples to ensure the validity of exobiological experiments.

A Mars airplane. [for Mars environment surveys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clarke, V. C.; Kerem, A.; Lewis, R.

1979-01-01

An airplane specifically designed for Mars flight is described, emphasizing its conceivable role as an aerial surveyor for visual imaging, gamma-ray and IR reflectance spectroscopy, studies of atmospheric composition and dynamics, and gravity-field, magnetic-field, and electromagnetic sounding. Possible imaging systems and surveying tasks are considered, along with a plausible mission scenario for a fleet of 12 airplanes, which would be taken to Mars in squadrons of four by three Shuttle/IUS Twin Stage/spacecraft carriers. A basic configuration closely resembling that of a competition glider is examined, and four types of airplane are discussed: hydrazine-powered cruisers and landers and electrically powered cruisers and landers. Attention is given to navigation, guidance, and control avionics, vehicle weight, the use of composite materials for the wing, and flight testing on earth.

Anomaly Trends for Missions to Mars: Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, Nelson W.; Hoffman, Alan R.

2008-01-01

Conducted as a part of NASA Ultra-Reliability effort: Goal is to design for increased reliability in all NASA missions. Desire is to increase reliability by a factor of 10. Study provides a baseline for current technology. Analyzed anomalies for spacecraft orbiting Mars. Long lived spacecraft. Comparison with current rover missions and past orbiters. Looked for trends to assist design of future missions.

Evaluating Mars Science Laboratory Landing Sites with the Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Mars-GRAM 2005)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Justh, H. L.; Justus, C. G.

2008-01-01

The Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Mars-GRAM) is an engineering-level atmospheric model widely used for diverse mission applications. Mars-GRAM s perturbation modeling capability is commonly used, in a Monte-Carlo mode, to perform high fidelity engineering end-to-end simulations for entry, descent, and landing (EDL) [1]. From the surface to 80 km altitude, Mars-GRAM is based on the NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM). Mars-GRAM and MGCM use surface topography from Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA), with altitudes referenced to the MOLA areoid, or constant potential surface. Traditional Mars-GRAM options for representing the mean atmosphere along entry corridors include: (1) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) mapping years 1 and 2, with Mars-GRAM data coming from NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM) results driven by observed TES dust optical depth or (2) TES mapping year 0, with user-controlled dust optical depth and Mars-GRAM data interpolated from MGCM model results driven by selected values of globally-uniform dust optical depth. Mars-GRAM 2005 has been validated [2] against Radio Science data, and both nadir and limb data from TES [3]. There are several new features included in Mars-GRAM 2005. The first is the option to use input data sets from MGCM model runs that were designed to closely simulate conditions observed during the first two years of TES observations at Mars. The TES Year 1 option includes values from April 1999 through January 2001. The TES Year 2 option includes values from February 2001 through December 2002. The second new feature is the option to read and use any auxiliary profile of temperature and density versus altitude. In exercising the auxiliary profile Mars-GRAM option, values from the auxiliary profile replace data from the original MGCM databases. Some examples of auxiliary profiles include data from TES nadir or limb observations and Mars mesoscale model output at a particular

50 Years of Mars Exploration

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-08-20

2015 marks 50 years of successful NASA missions to Mars starting with Mariner 4 in 1965. Since then, a total of 15 robotic missions led by various NASA centers have laid the groundwork for future human missions to the Red Planet. The journey to Mars continues with additional robotic missions planned for 2016 and 2020, and human missions in the 2030s.

Mars curiosity mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-04

NASA welcomed hundreds of children and accompanying adults to its INFINITY visitor center on Aug. 4, offering Mars-related activities that focused attention on the space agency's Curiosity mission to the Red Planet. Among other attractions, 3-D images from Mars provided 'Wow!' glimpses of the Red Planet. In addition to the Mars activities, visitors were able to tour other space-related exhibits at the center.

Mars Rover Concept Vehicle

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-05

The scientifically-themed Mars rover concept vehicle operates on an electric motor, powered by solar panels and a 700-volt battery. The back section opens and serves as a laboratory which can disconnect for autonomous research. While this exact rover is not expected to operate on Mars, one or more of its elements could make its way into a rover astronauts will drive on the Red Planet. The "Summer of Mars" promotion is designed to provide guests with a better understanding of NASA's studies of the Red Planet. The builders of the rover, Parker Brothers Concepts of Port Canaveral, Florida, incorporated input into its design from NASA subject matter experts.

Habitable Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Concept. [Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Layout and Configuration: 6-Crew, Habitable, Nested Tank Concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dang, Victor; Rucker, Michelle

2013-01-01

NASA's ultimate goal is the human exploration of Mars. Among the many difficult aspects of a trip to Mars is the return mission that would transport the astronauts from the Martian surface back into Mars orbit. One possible conceptual design to accomplish this task is a two-stage Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). In order to assess this design, a general layout and configuration for the spacecraft must be developed. The objective of my internship was to model a conceptual MAV design to support NASA's latest human Mars mission architecture trade studies, technology prioritization decisions, and mass, cost, and schedule estimates.

Mars for Earthlings: An Analog Approach to Mars in Undergraduate Education

PubMed Central

Kahmann-Robinson, Julia

2014-01-01

Abstract Mars for Earthlings (MFE) is a terrestrial Earth analog pedagogical approach to teaching undergraduate geology, planetary science, and astrobiology. MFE utilizes Earth analogs to teach Mars planetary concepts, with a foundational backbone in Earth science principles. The field of planetary science is rapidly changing with new technologies and higher-resolution data sets. Thus, it is increasingly important to understand geological concepts and processes for interpreting Mars data. MFE curriculum is topically driven to facilitate easy integration of content into new or existing courses. The Earth-Mars systems approach explores planetary origins, Mars missions, rocks and minerals, active driving forces/tectonics, surface sculpting processes, astrobiology, future explorations, and hot topics in an inquiry-driven environment. Curriculum leverages heavily upon multimedia resources, software programs such as Google Mars and JMARS, as well as NASA mission data such as THEMIS, HiRISE, CRISM, and rover images. Two years of MFE class evaluation data suggest that science literacy and general interest in Mars geology and astrobiology topics increased after participation in the MFE curriculum. Students also used newly developed skills to create a Mars mission team presentation. The MFE curriculum, learning modules, and resources are available online at http://serc.carleton.edu/marsforearthlings/index.html. Key Words: Mars—Geology—Planetary science—Astrobiology—NASA education. Astrobiology 14, 42–49. PMID:24359289

NASA Facts, The Viking Mission.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

Presented is one of a series of publications of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facts about the exploration of Mars. The Viking mission to Mars, consisting of two unmanned NASA spacecraft launched in August and September, 1975, is described. A description of the spacecraft and their paths is given. A diagram identifying the…

Radiation Measurements on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-12-09

Micrograys are unit of measurement for absorbed radiation dose. The vertical axis is in micrograys per day. The RAD instrument on NASA Curiosity Mars rover monitors the natural radiation environment at the surface of Mars.

The Mars Sample Return Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

O'Neil, W. J.; Cazaux, C.

2000-01-01

The Mars Sample Return (MSR) Project is underway. A 2003 mission to be launched on a Delta III Class vehicle and a 2005 mission launched on an Ariane 5 will culminate in carefully selected Mars samples arriving on Earth in 2008. NASA is the lead agency and will provide the Mars landed elements, namely, landers, rovers, and Mars ascent vehicles (MAVs). The French Space Agency CNES is the largest international partner and will provide for the joint NASA/CNES 2005 Mission the Ariane 5 launch and the Earth Return Mars Orbiter that will capture the sample canisters from the Mars parking orbits the MAVs place them in. The sample canisters will be returned to Earth aboard the CNES Orbiter in the Earth Entry Vehicles provided by NASA. Other national space agencies are also expected to participate in substantial roles. Italy is planning to provide a drill that will operate from the Landers to provide subsurface samples. Other experiments in addition to the MSR payload will also be carried on the Landers. This paper will present the current status of the design of the MSR missions and flight articles. c 2000 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.

Mars Hand Lens Imager Sends Ultra High-Res Photo from Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-10-17

This image of a U.S. penny on a calibration target was taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager MAHLI aboard NASA Curiosity rover in Gale Crater on Mars. At 14 micrometers per pixel, this is the highest-resolution image that MAHLI can acquire.

How Habitable Might an Exo-Mars Be?

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-13

How habitable might an Exo-Mars be? It's a complex question but one that NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission can help answer. To receive the same amount of starlight as Mars receives from our Sun, a planet orbiting an M-type red dwarf would have to be positioned much closer to its star than Mercury is to the Sun. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22075

Mars Science Laboratory Press Conference

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-07-22

Michael Watkins (third from left), mission manager and project engineer, Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), Jet Propulsion Lab, Pasadena, Calif., speaks at a press conference at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Friday, July 22, 2011 in Washington. From left to right, Watkins is joined by Dwayne Brown, NASA Headquarters public affairs officer; Michael Meyer, lead scientist Mars Exploration Program, NASA Headquarters; Watkins; John Grant, geologist, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington; Dawn Sumner, geologist, University of California, Davis and John Grotzinger, MSL project scientist, JPL. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Rotorcraft as Mars Scouts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, L. A.; Aiken, E. W.; Gulick, V.; Mancinelli, R.; Briggs, G. A.; Rutkowski, Michael (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

A new approach for the robotic exploration of Mars is detailed in this paper: the use of small, ultralightweight, autonomous rotary-wing aerial platforms. Missions based on robotic rotorcraft could make excellent candidates for NASA Mars Scout program. The paper details the work to date and future planning required for the development of such 'Mars rotorcraft.'

Mars: The Viking Discoveries.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

French, Bevan M.

This booklet describes the results of NASA's Viking spacecraft on Mars. It is intended to be useful for the teacher of basic courses in earth science, space science, astronomy, physics, or geology, but is also of interest to the well-informed layman. Topics include why we should study Mars, how the Viking spacecraft works, the winds of Mars, the…

Lifting SAM Instrument for Installation into Mars Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-01-18

NASA Sample Analysis at Mars SAM instrument, largest of the 10 science instruments for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission, will examine samples of Martian rocks, soil and atmosphere for information about chemicals that are important to life.

Radiation Assessment Detector for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-11-09

The Radiation Assessment Detector, shown prior to its September 2010 installation onto NASA Mars rover Curiosity, will aid future human missions to Mars by providing information about the radiation environment on Mars and on the way to Mars.

Radiation Exposure Comparisons with Mars Trip Calculation

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-12-09

Measurements with the MSL RAD on NASA Curiosity Mars rover during the flight to Mars and now on the surface of Mars enable an estimate of the radiation astronauts would be exposed to on an expedition to Mars.

NASA puts JWST Back on Track, but ExoMars Collaboration Looks Unlikely; Marsquakes happening yesterday, geologically; UFOs from black holes control shape of galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2012-04-01

NASA's funding plans put the James Webb Space Telescope firmly on track for a launch in 2018, to widespread relief, but the essentially flat funding settlement for 2013 overall means something has to go. Planetary science seems hardest hit, with the especial blow for European planetary scientists of NASA pulling out of ExoMars, the ESA-led mission to look for signs of life on Mars. Images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment have shown boulders displaced by seismic activity on Mars in the past few million years, and possibly much more recently than that. The bigger the supermassive black hole at the centre of a galaxy, the faster the stars in the galactic bulge rotate. Why this should be so has been something of a puzzle, but now a mechanism that is both powerful and common enough to do the job has been identified.

Mars as a Destination in a Capability-Driven Framework

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, S. J.; Drake, B. G.; Baker, J. D.; Voels, S. A.

2011-01-01

This paper describes NASA s current plans for the exploration of Mars by human crews within NASA s Capability-Driven Framework (CDF). The CDF describes an approach for progressively extending human explorers farther into the Solar System for longer periods of time as allowed by developments in technology and spacecraft systems. Within this framework, Mars defines the most challenging objective currently envisioned for human spaceflight. The paper first describes the CDF and potential destinations being considered within this framework. For destinations relevant to the exploration of Mars, this includes both the Martian surface and the two moons of Mars. This is followed by a brief review of our evolving understanding of Mars to provide the context for the specific objectives set for human exploration crews. This includes results from robotic missions and goals set for future Martian exploration by NASA's community-based forum, the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) and the MEPAG-sponsored Human Exploration of Mars - Science Analysis Group (HEM-SAG). The paper then reviews options available for human crews to reach Mars and return to Earth. This includes a discussion of the rationale used to select from among these options for envisioned Mars exploration missions. The paper then concludes with a description of technological and operational challenges that still face NASA in order to be able to achieve the exploration goals for Mars within the CDF.

Happy Mars Solstice!

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This image was acquired by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Surface Stereo Imager (SSI) in the late afternoon of the 30th Martian day of the mission, or Sol 30 (June 25, 2008). This is hours after the beginning of Martian northern summer. SSI used its natural-color filters, therefore the color is the color you would see on Mars. The image shows shadows from the SSI (left) and from the meteorological station mast (right) stretching toward the east as the sun dropped low in the west.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver

Mars Pathfinder Status at Launch

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spear, A. J.; Freeman, Delma C., Jr.; Braun, Robert D.

1996-01-01

The Mars Pathfinder Flight System is in final test, assembly and launch preparations at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Launch is scheduled for 2 Dec. 1996. The Flight System development, in particular the Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) system, was a major team effort involving JPL, other NASA centers and industry. This paper provides a summary Mars Pathfinder description and status at launch. In addition, a section by NASA's Langley Research Center, a key EDL contributor, is provided on their support to Mars Pathfinder. This section is included as an example of the work performed by Pathfinder team members outside JPL.

Mars Science Laboratory Atlas V First Stage Booster

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-07

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden walks around the United Launch Alliance Atlas V first stage booster with United Launch Alliance Vice President of Mission operations Jim Sponnick, NASA Mission Manager for Launch Services Wanda Harding, NASA Senior Advisor Mike French, and White House Fellow Debra Kurshan, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011, at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The booster will help send NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover to Mars later this year. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Modular Growth NTR Space Transportation System for Future NASA Human Lunar, NEA and Mars Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Borowski, Stanley K.; McCurdy, David R.; Packard, Thomas W.

2012-01-01

The nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) is a proven, high thrust propulsion technology that has twice the specific impulse (I(sub sp) approx.900 s) of today's best chemical rockets. During the Rover and NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Applications) programs, twenty rocket reactors were designed, built and ground tested. These tests demonstrated: (1) a wide range of thrust; (2) high temperature carbide-based nuclear fuel; (3) sustained engine operation; (4) accumulated lifetime; and (5) restart capability - everything required for affordable human missions beyond LEO. In NASA's recent Mars Design Reference Architecture (DRA) 5.0 study, the NTR was selected as the preferred propulsion option because of its proven technology, higher performance, lower IMLEO, versatile vehicle design, and growth potential. Furthermore, the NTR requires no large technology scale-ups since the smallest engine tested during the Rover program - the 25 klb(sub f) "Pewee" engine is sufficient for human Mars missions when used in a clustered engine configuration. The "Copernicus" crewed Mars transfer vehicle developed for DRA 5.0 was an expendable design sized for fast-conjunction, long surface stay Mars missions. It therefore has significant propellant capacity allowing a reusable "1-year" round trip human mission to a large, high energy near Earth asteroid (NEA) like Apophis in 2028. Using a "split mission" approach, Copernicus and its two key elements - a common propulsion stage and integrated "saddle truss" and LH2 drop tank assembly - configured as an Earth Return Vehicle / propellant tanker, can also support a short round trip (approx.18 month) / short orbital stay (60 days) Mars reconnaissance mission in the early 2030's before a landing is attempted. The same short stay orbital mission can be performed with an "all-up" vehicle by adding an "in-line" LH2 tank to Copernicus to supply the extra propellant needed for this higher energy, opposition-class mission. To transition to a

Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor Outreach Compilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1999-09-01

This videotape is a compilation of the best NASA JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) videos of the Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor missions. The mission is described using animation and narration as well as some actual footage of the entire sequence of mission events. Included within these animations are the spacecraft orbit insertion; descent to the Mars surface; deployment of the airbags and instruments; and exploration by Sojourner, the Mars rover. JPL activities at spacecraft control during significant mission events are also included at the end. The spacecraft cameras pan the surrounding Mars terrain and film Sojourner traversing the surface and inspecting rocks. A single, brief, processed image of the Cydonia region (Mars face) at an oblique angle from the Mars Global Surveyor is presented. A description of the Mars Pathfinder mission, instruments, landing and deployment process, Mars approach, spacecraft orbit insertion, rover operation are all described using computer animation. Actual color footage of Sojourner as well as a 360 deg pan of the Mars terrain surrounding the spacecraft is provided. Lower quality black and white photography depicting Sojourner traversing the Mars surface and inspecting Martian rocks also is included.

Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor Outreach Compilation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1999-01-01

This videotape is a compilation of the best NASA JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) videos of the Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor missions. The mission is described using animation and narration as well as some actual footage of the entire sequence of mission events. Included within these animations are the spacecraft orbit insertion; descent to the Mars surface; deployment of the airbags and instruments; and exploration by Sojourner, the Mars rover. JPL activities at spacecraft control during significant mission events are also included at the end. The spacecraft cameras pan the surrounding Mars terrain and film Sojourner traversing the surface and inspecting rocks. A single, brief, processed image of the Cydonia region (Mars face) at an oblique angle from the Mars Global Surveyor is presented. A description of the Mars Pathfinder mission, instruments, landing and deployment process, Mars approach, spacecraft orbit insertion, rover operation are all described using computer animation. Actual color footage of Sojourner as well as a 360 deg pan of the Mars terrain surrounding the spacecraft is provided. Lower quality black and white photography depicting Sojourner traversing the Mars surface and inspecting Martian rocks also is included.

Relay Support for the Mars Science Laboratory and the Coming Decade of Mars Relay Network Evolution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, Charles D., Jr.; Arnold, Bradford W.; Bell, David J.; Bruvold, Kristoffer N.; Gladden, Roy E.; Ilott, Peter A.; Lee, Charles H.

2012-01-01

In the past decade, an evolving network of Mars relay orbiters has provided telecommunication relay services to the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, and to the Mars Phoenix Lander, enabling high-bandwidth, energy-efficient data transfer and greatly increasing the volume of science data that can be returned from the Martian surface, compared to conventional direct-to-Earth links. The current relay network, consisting of NASA's Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and augmented by ESA's Mars Express Orbiter, stands ready to support the Mars Science Laboratory, scheduled to arrive at Mars on Aug 6, 2012, with new capabilities enabled by the Electra and Electra-Lite transceivers carried by MRO and MSL, respectively. The MAVEN orbiter, planned for launch in 2013, and the ExoMars/Trace Gas Orbiter, planned for launch in 2016, will replenish the on-orbit relay network as the current orbiter approach their end of life. Currently planned support scenarios for this future relay network include an ESA EDL Demonstrator Module deployed by the 2016 ExoMars/TGO orbiter, and the 2018 NASA/ESA Joint Rover, representing the first step in a multimission Mars Sample Return campaign.

Stars and Cosmic Rays Observed from Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-03-12

In this five-minute exposure taken from the surface of Mars by NASA Spirit rover, stars appear as streaks due to the rotation of the planet, and instantaneous cosmic-ray hits appear as points of light. Spirit took the image with its panoramic camera on March 11, 2004, after waking up during the martian night for a communication session with NASA's Mars Global Surveyor orbiter. Other exposures were also taken. The images tested the capabilities of the rover for night-sky observations. Scientists will use the results to aid planning for possible future astronomical observations from Mars. The difference in Mars' rotation, compared to Earth's, gives the star trails in this image a different orientation than they would have in a comparable exposure taken from Earth. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA05551

Weighing Molecules on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-11-02

New results from the Sample Analysis at Mars, or SAM, instrument on NASA Curiosity rover detected about 2,000 times as much argon-40 as argon-36, which weighs less, confirming the connection between Mars and Martian meteorites found on Earth.

Mars Odyssey All Stars: Chasma Boreale

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-12-09

Chasma Boreale is a long, flat-floored valley that cuts deep into Mars north polar icecap. This image is part of an All Star set marking the occasion of NASA Mars Odyssey as the longest-working Mars spacecraft in history.

Optical Navigation Demonstration Near Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-03-10

This image showing the position of the Martian moon Deimos against a background of stars is part of a successful technology demonstration completed by NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter before arrival at Mars

Stars in Orion as Seen from Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-03-11

Stars in the upper portion of the constellation Orion the Hunter, including the bright shoulder star Betelgeuse and Orion three-star belt, appear in this image taken from the surface of Mars by the panoramic camera on NASA rover Spirit. Spirit imaged stars on March 11, 2004, after it awoke during the martian night for a communication session with NASA's Mars Global Surveyor orbiter. This image is an eight-second exposure. Longer exposures were also taken. The images tested the capabilities of the rover for night-sky observations. Scientists will use the results to aid planning for possible future astronomical observations from Mars. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA05546

Spectrometer Images of Candidate Landing Sites for Next Mars Rover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2007-01-01

This composite shows four examples of 'browse' products the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) instrument obtained of areas on Mars near proposed landing sites for NASA's 2009 Mars Science Laboratory. These examples are from two of more than 30 candidate sites. They are enhanced color images of West Candor chasm (A) and Nili Fossae trough (B); and false color images indicating the presence of hydrated (water-containing) minerals in West Candor (C); and clay-like (phyllosilicate) minerals in Nili Fossae (D).

CRISM is one of six science instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., the CRISM team includes expertise from universities, government agencies and small businesses in the United States and abroad. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Mars Science Laboratory for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the orbiter.

Turbulent Lava Flow in Mars Athabasca Valles

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-01-11

This combination of images, taken by NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, helped researchers analyze the youngest flood lava on Mars, which is in Athabasca Valles, in the Elysium Planitia region of equatorial Mars.

Landscape of Former Lakes and Streams on Northern Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-15

Valleys younger than better-known ancient valley networks on Mars are evident on the landscape in the northern Arabia Terra region of Mars, particularly in the area mapped here with color-coded topographical information overlaid onto a photo mosaic. The area includes a basin informally named "Heart Lake" at upper left (northwest). Data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor orbiter are coded here as white and purple for lower elevations, yellow for higher elevation. The elevation information is combined with a mosaic of images from the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter, covering an area about 120 miles (about 190 kilometers) wide. The mapped area is centered near 35.91 degrees north latitude, 1 degree east longitude on Mars. These lakes and streams held water several hundred million years after better-known ancient lake environments on Mars, according to 2016 findings. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20838

Preparation for Analytical Measurements on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-03-31

A Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) team member at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, prepares the SAM testbed for an experiment. This test copy of the SAM suite of instruments is inside a chamber that, when closed, can model the pressure and temperature environment that SAM sees inside NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars. Many weeks of testing are often needed to develop and refine sequences of operations that SAM uses for making specific measurements on Mars. This was the case with preparation to pull a volume of gas from the atmosphere and extract the heavy noble gas xenon. SAM's measurements of different types of xenon in the Martian atmosphere provide clues about the planet's history. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19149

Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) Media Day

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

On Saturday, November 26, NASA is scheduled to launch the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission featuring Curiosity, the largest and most advanced rover ever sent to the Red Planet. The Curiosity rover bristles with multiple cameras and instruments, including Goddard's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. By looking for evidence of water, carbon, and other important building blocks of life in the Martian soil and atmosphere, SAM will help discover whether Mars ever had the potential to support life. Curiosity will be delivered to Gale crater, a 96-mile-wide crater that contains a record of environmental changes in its sedimentary rock, in August 2012. ----- NASA image November 18, 2010 The Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument is considered one of the most complicated instruments ever to land on the surface of another planet. Equipped with a gas chromatograph, a quadruple mass spectrometer, and a tunable laser spectrometer, SAM will carry out the initial search for organic compounds when the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover lands in 2012. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Ed Campion NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Send Your Students to Mars for Their next Research Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindgren, Charles

2006-01-01

The NASA's Mars Student Imaging Project (MSIP) is led by the Arizona State University (ASU) Mars Education Program, a major partner of NASA's Mars Exploration Program. MSIP is based on the National Science Education Standards and includes curriculum on terrestrial planet characteristics, experimental design, and proposal writing. Three spacecraft…

Mars Comet Encounter Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-09

Dwayne Brown, NASA public affairs officer, moderates a media briefing where panelists outlined how space and Earth-based assets will be used to image and study comet Siding Spring during its Sunday, Oct. 19 flyby of Mars, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014 at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Mars Odyssey Observes Deimos

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-22

Colors in this image of the Martian moon Deimos indicate a range of surface temperatures detected by observing the moon on February 15, 2018, with the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter. The left edge of the small moon is in darkness, and the right edge in sunlight. Temperature information was derived from thermal-infrared imaging such as the grayscale image shown smaller at lower left with the moon in the same orientation. The color-coding merges information from THEMIS observations made in 10 thermal-infrared wavelength bands. This was the first observation of Deimos by Mars Odyssey; the spacecraft first imaged Mars' other moon, Phobos, on September 29, 2017. Researchers have been using THEMIS to examine Mars since early 2002, but the maneuver turning the orbiter around to point the camera at Phobos was developed only recently. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22250

Dragon Scales of Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-11

This intriguing surface texture is the result of rock interacting with water, as observed by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The rock was then eroded and later exposed to the surface. The pinkish, almost dragon-like scaled texture represents Martian bedrock that has specifically altered into a clay-bearing rock. The nature of the water responsible for the alteration, and how it interacted with the rock to form the clay remains poorly understood. Not surprisingly, the study of such altered rocks on Mars is an area of active investigation by the Mars science community. Understanding such interactions, and how they happened, help scientists to understand the past climate on Mars, and if the red planet ever harbored life. Recent studies indicate that the early Martian climate may not have been as warm, wet, and Earth-like, as previously suggested. This is not a problem for finding life on Mars as one might think. Ongoing studies of dry and cold environments on Earth shows that life finds ways to adapt to such extremes. Such work provides hope for finding evidence for life on other planets, like Mars, someday. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21781

Mars Pathfinder

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murdin, P.

2000-11-01

First of NASA's Discovery missions. Launched in December 1996 and arrived at Mars on 4 July 1997. Mainly intended as a technology demonstration mission. Used airbags to cushion the landing on Mars. The Carl Sagan Memorial station returned images of an ancient flood plain in Ares Vallis. The 10 kg Sojourner rover used an x-ray spectrometer to study the composition of rocks and travelled about 100 ...

Oliver Sacks: Our Correspondence About Twins/Twin Research: Vanishing Twins Syndrome; Discordant Sex in MZ Twins; Pregnancy Outcomes in IVF and ICSI Conceived Twins/Print and Media: Superfetated Twins; Twins Discordant for Smoking; Twins in Fashion; Yale University Twin Hockey Players; Conjoined Twin-Visiting Professor.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2017-08-01

The late neurologist and author, Oliver Sacks, published an insightful 1986 review of Marjorie Wallace's book, The Silent Twins, in the New York Times. Taking exception to his assertion about Sir Francis Galton, I wrote a letter to the Times' editor. The letter was unpublished, but it brought a wonderful response from Sacks himself that is reproduced and examined. Next, brief reviews of twin research concerning the vanishing twin syndrome (VTS), discordant sex in a monozygotic (MZ) twin pair, and multiple pregnancy outcomes from assisted reproductive technology (ART) are presented. This section is followed by popular coverage of superfetated twins, smoking-discordant co-twins, twins in fashion, Yale University twin hockey players, and a visiting professor who was a conjoined twin.

"The Moon Village and Journey to Mars enable each other"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beldavs, Vidvuds

2016-07-01

NASA has proposed the Journey to Mars, a multi-decade collaborative international effort to establish permanent manned operations on the Martian surface as well as in orbit, most likely on the Martian moons. NASA's proposed the Journey to Mars has come under politically motivated attack as illusory, as beyond NASA's capabilities and anticipated NASA budgets in the foreseeable future. [1]. Other concerns come from various communities of researchers concerned about securing sustaining funding for their largely robotic research missions. ESA's Director General Dietrich Woerner's proposed Moon Village faces challenges ESA member states concerned about sustaining funding for projects already underway or in planning. Both the Journey to Mars and Moon Village raise the question - who will or who can pay for it? The 2013 US Research Council study suggested potential benefits to a mission to Mars from activities on the Moon [2]. The NASA funded Flexible Lunar Architecture study came to similar conclusions using a different methodology [3]. A logistics analysis by an MIT team suggested the possibility of cost savings through use of lunar water for propellant to reach Mars [4]. The highly promising private-public financing approach has been examined for potential application to funding the costs of reaching Mars [5]. Insofar as the feasibility of utilization of lunar water has not been determined these conclusions are speculative. This study will examine the following alternative scenarios for establishing sustainable, manned operations on Mars and permanent manned operations on the Moon: A. NASA-led Journey to Mars without an ESA-led Moon Village B. ESA-led Moon Village without NASA-led Journey to Mars C. NASA-led Journey to Mars with an ESA-led Moon Village D. Shared Infrastructure scenario - NASA-led Journey to Mars with ESA-led Moon Village and with a potential JAXA-led space-based-solar power initiative E. Space Industrialization scenario - Shared Infrastructure scenario

Mars Science Laboratory Press Conference

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-07-22

Dawn Sumner, geologist, University of California, Davis speaks at a Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) press conference at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Friday, July 22, 2011 in Washington. The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), or Curiosity, is scheduled to launch late this year from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and land in August 2012. Curiosity is twice as long and more than five times as heavy as previous Mars rovers. The rover will study whether the landing region at Gale crater had favorable environmental conditions for supporting microbial life and for preserving clues about whether life ever existed. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Mars Science Laboratory Press Conference

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-07-22

John Grant, geologist, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, speaks at a Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) press conference at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Friday, July 22, 2011 in Washington. The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), or Curiosity, is scheduled to launch late this year from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and land in August 2012. Curiosity is twice as long and more than five times as heavy as previous Mars rovers. The rover will study whether the landing region at Gale crater had favorable environmental conditions for supporting microbial life and for preserving clues about whether life ever existed. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Bird's Eye View of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2004-01-01

This artist's concept shows NASA's future Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission over the red planet.

NASA plans to launch this multipurpose spacecraft in August 2005 to advance our understanding of Mars through detailed observation, to examine potential landing sites for future surface missions and to provide a high-data-rate communications relay for those missions.

The orbiter's shallow radar experiment, one of six science instruments on board, is designed to probe the internal structure of Mars' polar ice caps, as well as to gather information planet-wide about underground layers of ice, rock and, perhaps, liquid water, which might be accessible from the surface.

Mars Science Laboratory Atlas V First Stage Booster

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-07

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, second from left, talks with United Launch Alliance Vice President of Mission operations Jim Sponnick, along with NASA Mission Manager for Launch Services Wanda Harding, left, White House Fellow Debra Kurshan, right, and NASA Senior Advisor Mike French, background, in front of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V first stage booster, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011, at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The booster will help send NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover to Mars later this year. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

An inside look at NASA planetology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dwornik, S. E.

1976-01-01

Staffing, financing and budget controls, and research grant allocations of NASA are reviewed with emphasis on NASA-supported research in planetary geological sciences: studies of the composition, structure, and history of solar system planets. Programs, techniques, and research grants for studies of Mars photographs acquired through Mariner 6-10 flights are discussed at length, and particularly the handling of computer-enhanced photographic data. Scheduled future NASA-sponsored planet exploration missions (to Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus) are mentioned.

Mars-GRAM 2010: Improving the Precision of Mars-GRAM

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Justh, H. L.; Justus, C. G.; Ramey, H. S.

2011-01-01

It has been discovered during the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) site selection process that the Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Mars-GRAM) when used for sensitivity studies for Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) MapYear=0 and large optical depth values, such as tau=3, is less than realistic. Mars-GRAM's perturbation modeling capability is commonly used, in a Monte-Carlo mode, to perform high fidelity engineering end-to-end simulations for entry, descent, and landing (EDL). Mars-GRAM 2005 has been validated against Radio Science data, and both nadir and limb data from TES. Traditional Mars-GRAM options for representing the mean atmosphere along entry corridors include: (1) TES mapping year 0, with user-controlled dust optical depth and Mars-GRAM data interpolated from NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM) results driven by selected values of globally-uniform dust optical depth, or (2) TES mapping years 1 and 2, with Mars-GRAM data coming from MGCM results driven by observed TES dust optical depth. From the surface to 80 km altitude, Mars-GRAM is based on NASA Ames MGCM. Above 80 km, Mars-GRAM is based on the University of Michigan Mars Thermospheric General Circulation Model (MTGCM). MGCM results that were used for Mars-GRAM with MapYear=0 were from a MGCM run with a fixed value of tau=3 for the entire year at all locations. This choice of data has led to discrepancies that have become apparent during recent sensitivity studies for MapYear=0 and large optical depths. Unrealistic energy absorption by time-invariant atmospheric dust leads to an unrealistic thermal energy balance on the polar caps. The outcome is an inaccurate cycle of condensation/sublimation of the polar caps and, as a consequence, an inaccurate cycle of total atmospheric mass and global-average surface pressure. Under an assumption of unchanged temperature profile and hydrostatic equilibrium, a given percentage change in surface pressure would produce a corresponding percentage

Exploring Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Breuil, Stéphanie

2016-04-01

Mars is our neighbour planet and has always fascinated humans as it has been seen as a potential abode for life. Knowledge about Mars is huge and was constructed step by step through numerous missions. It could be difficult to describe these missions, the associated technology, the results, the questions they raise, that's why an activity is proposed, that directly interests students. Their production is presented in the poster. Step 1: The main Mars feature and the first Mars explorations using telescope are presented to students. It should be really interesting to present "Mars Canals" from Percival Lowell as it should also warn students against flawed interpretation. Moreover, this study has raised the big question about extra-terrestrial life on Mars for the first time. Using Google Mars is then a good way to show the huge knowledge we have on the planet and to introduce modern missions. Step 2: Students have to choose and describe one of the Mars mission from ESA and NASA. They should work in pairs. Web sites from ESA and NASA are available and the teacher makes sure the main missions will be studied. Step 3: Students have to collect different pieces of information about the mission - When? Which technology? What were the main results? What type of questions does it raise? They prepare an oral presentation in the form they want (role play, academic presentation, using a poster, PowerPoint). They also have to produce playing cards about the mission that could be put on a timeline. Step 4: As a conclusion, the different cards concerning different missions are mixed. Groups of students receive cards and they have to put them on a timeline as fast as possible. It is also possible to play the game "timeline".

A Vision for the Exploration of Mars: Robotic Precursors Followed by Humans to Mars Orbit in 2033

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sellers, Piers J.; Garvin, James B.; Kinney, Anne L.; Amato, Michael J.; White, Nicholas E.

2012-01-01

The reformulation of the Mars program gives NASA a rare opportunity to deliver a credible vision in which humans, robots, and advancements in information technology combine to open the deep space frontier to Mars. There is a broad challenge in the reformulation of the Mars exploration program that truly sets the stage for: 'a strategic collaboration between the Science Mission Directorate (SMD), the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD) and the Office of the Chief Technologist, for the next several decades of exploring Mars'.Any strategy that links all three challenge areas listed into a true long term strategic program necessitates discussion. NASA's SMD and HEOMD should accept the President's challenge and vision by developing an integrated program that will enable a human expedition to Mars orbit in 2033 with the goal of returning samples suitable for addressing the question of whether life exists or ever existed on Mars

Phoenix Mars Lander in Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

NASA's next Mars-bound spacecraft, the Phoenix Mars Lander, was partway through assembly and testing at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, in September 2006, progressing toward an August 2007 launch from Florida. In this photograph, spacecraft specialists work on the lander after its fan-like circular solar arrays have been spread open for testing. The arrays will be in this configuration when the spacecraft is active on the surface of Mars.

Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. It will dig into the surface, test scooped-up samples for carbon-bearing compounds and serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and development partnership with Lockheed Martin Space Systems. International contributions for Phoenix are provided by the Canadian Space Agency, the University of Neuchatel (Switzerland), the University of Copenhagen, and the Max Planck Institute in Germany. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Reared-Apart Chinese Twins: Chance Discovery/Twin-Based Research: Twin Study of Media Use; Twin Relations Over the Life Span; Breast-Feeding Opposite-Sex Twins/Print and Online Media: Twins in Fashion; Second Twin Pair Born to Tennis Star; Twin Primes; Twin Pandas.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2017-04-01

A January 2017 reunion of 10-year-old reared-apart Chinese twin girls was captured live on ABC's morning talk show Good Morning America, and rebroadcast on their evening news program Nightline. The twins' similarities and differences, and their participation in ongoing research will be described. This story is followed by reviews of twin research concerning genetic and environmental influences on media use, twin relations across the lifespan and the breast-feeding of opposite-sex twins. Popular interest items include twins in fashion, the second twin pair born to an internationally renowned tennis star, twin primes and twin pandas.

Estimated Radiation Dosage on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2002-03-01

This global map of Mars, based on data from NASA Mars Odyssey, shows the estimated radiation dosages from cosmic rays reaching the surface, a serious health concern for any future human exploration of the planet.

Mountainous Crater Rim on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-10-17

This is a screen shot from a high-definition simulated movie of Mojave Crater on Mars, based on images taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment HiRISE camera on NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Mars Solar Power

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landis, Geoffrey A.; Kerslake, Thomas W.; Jenkins, Phillip P.; Scheiman, David A.

2004-01-01

NASA missions to Mars, both robotic and human, rely on solar arrays for the primary power system. Mars presents a number of challenges for solar power system operation, including a dusty atmosphere which modifies the spectrum and intensity of the incident solar illumination as a function of time of day, degradation of the array performance by dust deposition, and low temperature operation. The environmental challenges to Mars solar array operation will be discussed and test results of solar cell technology operating under Mars conditions will be presented, along with modeling of solar cell performance under Mars conditions. The design implications for advanced solar arrays for future Mars missions is discussed, and an example case, a Martian polar rover, are analyzed.

Strain-Life Assessment of Grainex Mar-M 247 for NASA's Turbine Seal Test Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Delgado, Irebert R.; Halford, Gary R.; Steinetz, Bruce M.; Rimnac, Clare M.

2004-01-01

NASA s Turbine Seal Test Facility is used to test air-to-air seals for use primarily in advanced jet engine applications. Combinations of high temperature, high speed, and high pressure limit the disk life, due to the concern of crack initiation in the bolt holes of the Grainex Mar-M 247 disk. The primary purpose of this current work is to determine an inspection interval to ensure safe operation. The current work presents high temperature fatigue strain-life data for test specimens cut from an actual Grainex Mar-M 247 disk. Several different strain-life models were compared to the experimental data including the Manson-Hirschberg Method of Universal Slopes, the Halford-Nachtigall Mean Stress Method, and the Modified Morrow Method. The Halford-Nachtigall Method resulted in only an 18 percent difference between predicted and experimental results. Using the experimental data at a 99.95 percent prediction level and the presence of 6 bolt holes it was found that the disk should be inspected after 665 cycles based on a total strain of 0.5 percent at 649 C.

Curiosity Flying Over Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-06

NASA Curiosity rover and its parachute were spotted by NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as Curiosity descended to the surface on Aug. 5 PDT Aug. 6 EDT. Curiosity and its parachute are in the small white box at center.

Mars Orbiter Observes Comet Siding Spring Animation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-07

This frame from an animated artist rendering begins with NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft above Mars. The movie then transitions to a sequence of HiRISE images of the comet taken as it flew past Mars.

MAVEN at Mars Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-18

This artist concept depicts NASA Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN MAVEN spacecraft near Mars. MAVEN is in development for launch in 2013 and will be the first mission devoted to understanding the Martian upper atmosphere.

Vibration and Acoustic Testing for Mars Micromission Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kern, Dennis L.; Scharton, Terry D.

1999-01-01

The objective of the Mars Micromission program being managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for NASA is to develop a common spacecraft that can carry telecommunications equipment and a variety of science payloads for exploration of Mars. The spacecraft will be capable of carrying robot landers and rovers, cameras, probes, balloons, gliders or aircraft, and telecommunications equipment to Mars at much lower cost than recent NASA Mars missions. The lightweight spacecraft (about 220 Kg mass) will be launched in a cooperative venture with CNES as a TWIN auxiliary payload on the Ariane 5 launch vehicle. Two or more Mars Micromission launches are planned for each Mars launch opportunity, which occur every 26 months. The Mars launch window for the first mission is November 1, 2002 through April 2003, which is planned to be a Mars airplane technology demonstration mission to coincide with the 100 year anniversary of the Kittyhawk flight. Several subsequent launches will create a telecommunications network orbiting Mars, which will provide for continuous communication with lenders and rovers on the Martian surface. Dedicated science payload flights to Mars are slated to start in 2005. This new cheaper and faster approach to Mars exploration calls for innovative approaches to the qualification of the Mars Micromission spacecraft for the Ariane 5 launch vibration and acoustic environments. JPL has in recent years implemented new approaches to spacecraft testing that may be effectively applied to the Mars Micromission. These include 1) force limited vibration testing, 2) combined loads, vibration and modal testing, and 3) direct acoustic testing. JPL has performed nearly 200 force limited vibration tests in the past 9 years; several of the tests were on spacecraft and large instruments, including the Cassini and Deep Space One spacecraft. Force limiting, which measures and limits the spacecraft base reaction force using triaxial force gages sandwiched between the

Mars Weather-Station Tools on Rover Mast

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-04-13

The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover includes temperature and humidity sensors mounted on the rover's mast. One of the REMS booms extends to the left from the mast in this view. Spain provided REMS to NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Project. The monitoring station has provided information about air pressure, relative humidity, air temperature, ground temperature, wind and ultraviolet radiation in all Martian seasons and at all times of day or night. This view is a detail from a January 2015 Curiosity self-portrait. The self-portrait, at PIA19142, was assembled from images taken by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19164

Mars Science Laboratory Spacecraft Assembled for Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

The major components of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft cruise stage atop the aeroshell, which has the descent stage and rover inside were connected together in October 2008 for several weeks of system testing, including simulation of launch vibrations and deep-space environmental conditions.

These components will be taken apart again, for further work on each of them, after the environmental testing. The Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being assembled and tested for launch in 2011.

This image was taken inside the Spacecraft Assembly Facility at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., which manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.

NASA Advisory Council: Fact-Finding Session

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cohen, Aaron; Martin, Franklin D.; Craig, Mark K.; Duke, Michael B.

1992-01-01

The principal agenda item for this fact-finding meeting of the NASA Advisory Council was NASA's preliminary planning of options to implement the President's initiative for establishing a base on the Moon and launching a human expedition to Mars. NASA's presentation (1) reviewed the key elements in the President's speech of July 20, 1989, summoning the Nation to launch a new exploration initiative to the Moon and Mars; (2) outlined five candidate options analyzed in terms of schedule and scale of effort (for a return to the Moon and for a voyage to Mars); (3) outlined tentative robotic mission milestones for both a 'vigorous deployment' option and a 'paced deployment' option; (4) reviewed Earth-to-orbit delivery requirements for a lunar heavy-lift launch vehicle, the National Space Transportation System, and a Mars heavy-lift launch vehicle; (5) summarized the associated Space Station Freedom requirements; (6) outlined the technology as well as human factors requirements for the candidate options; and (7) summarized the themes and approaches that could be employed for the science aspects of a national Moon/Mars exploration program.

MarsQuest: Bringing the Excitement of Mars Exploration to the Public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dusenbery, P. B.; Morrow, C. A.; Harold, J. B.; Klug, S. L.

2002-12-01

We are living in an extraordinary era of Mars exploration. NASA's Odyssey spacecraft has recently discovered vast amounts of hydrogen beneath the surface of Mars, suggesting the presence of sub-surface ice. Two Mars Exploration Rovers are scheduled to land in early 2004. To bring the excitement and discoveries of Mars exploration to the public, the Space Science Institute (SSI) of Boulder, CO, has developed a comprehensive Mars Education Program that includes: 1) large and small traveling exhibits, 2) workshops for museum and classroom educators (in partnership with the Mars Education Program at Arizona State University (ASU)), and 3) an interactive Website called MarsQuest Online (in partnership with TERC and JPL). All three components will be presented and offered as a good model for actively involving scientists and their discoveries to improve science education in museums and the classroom. The centerpiece of SSI's Mars Education Program is the 5,000-square-foot traveling exhibition, MarsQuest: Exploring the Red Planet, which was developed with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, and several corporate donors. The MarsQuest exhibit is nearing the end of a highly successful, fully-booked three-year tour. The Institute plans to send an enhanced and updated MarsQuest on a second three-year tour and is also developing Destination: Mars, a mini-version of MarsQuest designed for smaller venues. Workshops for museum educators, docents, and local teachers are conducted at host sites. These workshops were developed collaboratively by Dr. Cheri Morrow, SSI's Education and Public Outreach Manager, and Sheri Klug, Director of the Mars K-12 Education Program at ASU. They are designed to inspire and empower participants to extend the excitement and science content of the exhibitions into classrooms and museum-based education programs in an ongoing fashion. The MarsQuest Online project is developing a Website that will use the MarsQuest exhibit as a

MarsQuest: Bringing the Excitement of Mars Exploration to the Public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dusenbery, P. B.; Morrow, C. A.; Harold, J. B.; Klug, S. L.

2002-09-01

We are living in an extraordinary era of Mars exploration. NASA's Odyssey spacecraft has recently discovered vast amounts of hydrogen beneath the surface of Mars, suggesting the presence of sub-surface ice. Two Mars Exploration Rovers are scheduled to land in early 2004. To bring the excitement and discoveries of Mars exploration to the public, the Space Science Institute (SSI) of Boulder, CO, has developed a comprehensive Mars Education Program that includes: 1) large and small traveling exhibits, 2) workshops for museum and classroom educators (in partnership with the Mars Education Program at Arizona State University (ASU)), and 3) an interactive Website called MarsQuest Online (in partnership with TERC and JPL). All three components will be presented and offered as a good model for actively involving scientists and their discoveries to improve science education in museums and the classroom. The centerpiece of SSI's Mars Education Program is the 5,000-square-foot traveling exhibition, MarsQuest: Exploring the Red Planet, which was developed with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, and several corporate donors. The MarsQuest exhibit is nearing the end of a highly successful, fully-booked three-year tour. The Institute plans to send an enhanced and updated MarsQuest on a second three-year tour and is also developing Destination: Mars, a mini-version of MarsQuest designed for smaller venues. Workshops for museum educators, docents, and local teachers are conducted at host sites. These workshops were developed collaboratively by Dr. Cheri Morrow, SSI's Education and Public Outreach Manager, and Sheri Klug, Director of the Mars K-12 Education Program at ASU. They are designed to inspire and empower participants to extend the excitement and science content of the exhibitions into classrooms and museum-based education programs in an ongoing fashion. The MarsQuest Online project is developing a Website that will use the MarsQuest exhibit as a

Phoenix--the first Mars Scout mission.

PubMed

Shotwell, Robert

2005-01-01

NASA has initiated the first of a new series of missions to augment the current Mars Program. In addition to the systematic series of planned, directed missions currently comprising the Mars Program plan, NASA has started a series of Mars Scout missions that are low cost, price fixed, Principal [correction of Principle] Investigator-led projects. These missions are intended to provide an avenue for rapid response to discoveries made as a result of the primary Mars missions, as well as allow more risky technologies and approaches to be applied in the investigation of Mars. The first in this new series is the Phoenix mission which was selected as part of a highly competitive process. Phoenix will use the Mars 2001 Lander that was discontinued in 2000 and apply a new set of science objectives and mission objectives and will validate this soft lander architecture for future applications. This paper will provide an overview of both the Program and the Project. c2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mars Comet Encounter Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-09

Jim Green, director, Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington gives remarks during a media briefing where he and other panelists outlined how space and Earth-based assets will be used to image and study comet Siding Spring during its Sunday, Oct. 19 flyby of Mars, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014 at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Escape from Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-10

This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows one of millions of small (10s of meters in diameter) craters and their ejecta material that dot the Elysium Planitia region of Mars. The small craters were likely formed when high-speed blocks of rock were thrown out by a much larger impact (about 10-kilometers in diameter) and fell back to the ground. Some of these blocks may actually escape Mars, which is how we get samples in the form of meteorites that fall to Earth. Other ejected blocks have insufficient velocity, or the wrong trajectory, to escape the Red Planet. As such, when one of these high-speed blocks impacts the surface, it makes what is called a "secondary" crater. These secondaries can form dense "chains" or "rays," which are radial to the crater that formed them. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21769

Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome

MedlinePlus

... this page: //medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001595.htm Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome To use the sharing features on this page, please enable JavaScript. Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome is a rare condition ...

NASA's Flexible Path for the Human Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soeder, James F.

2016-01-01

The idea of human exploration of Mars has been a topic in science fiction for close to a century. For the past 50 years it has been a major thrust in NASAs space mission planning. Currently, NASA is pursuing a flexible development path with the final goal to have humans on Mars. To reach Mars, new hardware will have to be developed and many technology hurdles will have to be overcome. This presentation discusses Mars and its Moons; the flexible path currently being followed; the hardware under development to support exploration; and the technical and organizational challenges that must be overcome to realize the age old dream of humans traveling to Mars.

Mars Science Laboratory Press Conference

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-07-22

Michael Watkins (right), mission manager and Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) engineer, Jet Propulsion Lab, Pasadena, Calif., speaks at a press conference, as Michael Meyer, Mars Exploration Program lead scientist looks on, at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Friday, July 22, 2011 in Washington. The MSL, or Curiosity, is scheduled to launch late this year from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and land in August 2012. Curiosity is twice as long and more than five times as heavy as previous Mars rovers. The rover will study whether the landing region at Gale crater had favorable environmental conditions for supporting microbial life and for preserving clues about whether life ever existed. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Mars Science Laboratory Rover Closeout

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-10

The Mars Science Laboratory mission rover, Curiosity, is prepared for final integration into the complete NASA spacecraft in this photograph taken inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Mars Science Laboratory Descent Stage

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-10

The descent stage of NASA Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being lifted during assembly of the spacecraft in this photograph taken inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Mars Descent Imager for Curiosity

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-07-19

A pocketknife provides scale for this image of the Mars Descent Imager camera; the camera will fly on the Curiosity rover of NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission. Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, Calif., supplied the camera for the mission.

Mars Volcanic Cone with Hydrothermal Deposits

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-10-31

This false color image from NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter indicates that the volcanic cone in the Nili Patera caldera on Mars has hydrothermal mineral deposits on the southern flanks and nearby terrains.

Mars Science Laboratory Cruise Stage

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-10

The cruise stage of NASA Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being prepared for final stacking of the spacecraft in this photograph from inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Exobiology on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Devincenzi, D. L. (Editor); Marshall, J. R. (Editor); Andersen, D. (Editor)

1990-01-01

Descriptions of several instrument concepts that were generated during a workshop entitled, Exobiology Instrument Concepts for a Soviet Mars 94/94 Mission, held at NASA Ames Research Center in 1989 are presented. The objective was to define and describe instrument concepts for exobiology and related science that would be compatible with the mission types under discussion for the 1994 and 1996 Soviet Mars missions. Experiments that use existing technology were emphasized. The concepts discussed could also be used on U.S. missions that follow Mars Observer.

Brazilian Twin Registry: A Bright Future for Twin Studies/Twin Research: Twin Study of Alcohol Consumption and Mortality; Oxygen Uptake in Adolescent Twins/In the News: Superfecundated Twins In Vietnam; Adolescent Twin Relations; Twin and Triplet Co-Workers; A Special Twin Ultrasound; Monozygotic Twins With Different Skin Color; Identical Twin Returns from Space.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2016-06-01

The establishment of the Brazilian Twin Registry for the study of genetic, social, and cultural influences on behavior is one of eleven newly funded projects in the Department of Psychology at the University of São Paulo. These 11 interrelated projects form the core of the university's Center for Applied Research on Well-Being and Human Behavior. An overview of the planned twin research and activities to date is presented. Next, two recent twin studies are reviewed, one on the relationship between alcohol consumption and mortality, and the other on factors affecting maximal oxygen uptake. Twins cited in the media include the first identified superfecundated twins in Vietnam, adolescent twin relations, twins and triplets who work together, monozygotic twins with different skin tones and a co-twin control study that addresses the effects of space travel.

Mars Science Laboratory Heatshield Flight Data Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mahzari, Milad; White, Todd

2017-01-01

NASA Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), which landed the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars on August 5th, 2012, was the largest and heaviest Mars entry vehicle representing a significant advancement in planetary entry, descent and landing capability. Hypersonic flight performance data was collected using MSLs on-board sensors called Mars Entry, Descent and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI). This talk will give an overview of MSL entry and a description of MEDLI sensors. Observations from flight data will be examined followed by a discussion of analysis efforts to reconstruct surface heating from heatshields in-depth temperature measurements. Finally, a brief overview of MEDLI2 instrumentation, which will fly on NASAs Mars2020 mission, will be presented with a discussion on how lessons learned from MEDLI data affected the design of MEDLI2 instrumentation.

Color Image of Phoenix Lander on Mars Surface

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-05-27

This is an enhanced-color image from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment HiRISE camera. It shows the NASA Mars Phoenix lander with its solar panels deployed on the Mars surface

Hydrated Minerals Exposed at Stokes, Northern Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-06-24

This view of Stokes Crater is a mosaic of images taken by NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and ESA Mars Express showing at least one of the nine craters in the northern lowlands of Mars with exposures of hydrated minerals detected from orbit.

Curiosity: The Next Mars Rover Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-05-19

This artist concept features NASA Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars past or present ability to sustain microbial life. The rover examines a rock on Mars with a set of tools at the end of the rover arm.

Looking Back at Spirit Trail to the Summit Stereo

NASA Image and Video Library

2005-10-21

Before moving on to explore more of Mars, NASA Mars Exploration Rover Spirit looked back at the long and winding trail of twin wheel tracks the rover created to get to the top of Husband Hill. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image.

So You Want to Go To Mars? Episode 1

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-10

So you want to go to Mars? The International Space Station (ISS) is helping us get there. This short 1.18 minute video highlights several ways the ISS is helping NASA extend human presence into deep space. Orion Spacecraft and SLS webpage https://www.nasa.gov/content/j2m-getting-to-mars-sls-and-orion International Space Station https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html HD Download: https://archive.org/details/jsc2018m000132_SoYouWantToGoToMars_E1 Youtube: https://youtu.be/UCNNTwlu9kE

Nasa's Planetary Geologic Mapping Program: Overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, D. A.

2016-06-01

NASA's Planetary Science Division supports the geologic mapping of planetary surfaces through a distinct organizational structure and a series of research and analysis (R&A) funding programs. Cartography and geologic mapping issues for NASA's planetary science programs are overseen by the Mapping and Planetary Spatial Infrastructure Team (MAPSIT), which is an assessment group for cartography similar to the Mars Exploration Program Assessment Group (MEPAG) for Mars exploration. MAPSIT's Steering Committee includes specialists in geological mapping, who make up the Geologic Mapping Subcommittee (GEMS). I am the GEMS Chair, and with a group of 3-4 community mappers we advise the U.S. Geological Survey Planetary Geologic Mapping Coordinator (Dr. James Skinner) and develop policy and procedures to aid the planetary geologic mapping community. GEMS meets twice a year, at the Annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in March, and at the Annual Planetary Mappers' Meeting in June (attendance is required by all NASA-funded geologic mappers). Funding programs under NASA's current R&A structure to propose geological mapping projects include Mars Data Analysis (Mars), Lunar Data Analysis (Moon), Discovery Data Analysis (Mercury, Vesta, Ceres), Cassini Data Analysis (Saturn moons), Solar System Workings (Venus or Jupiter moons), and the Planetary Data Archiving, Restoration, and Tools (PDART) program. Current NASA policy requires all funded geologic mapping projects to be done digitally using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software. In this presentation we will discuss details on how geologic mapping is done consistent with current NASA policy and USGS guidelines.

Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model 2001 Version (Mars-GRAM 2001): Users Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Justus, C. G.; Johnson, D. L.

2001-01-01

This document presents Mars Global Reference Atmospheric Model 2001 Version (Mars-GRAM 2001) and its new features. As with the previous version (mars-2000), all parameterizations fro temperature, pressure, density, and winds versus height, latitude, longitude, time of day, and season (Ls) use input data tables from NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM) for the surface through 80-km altitude and the University of Arizona Mars Thermospheric General Circulation Model (MTGCM) for 80 to 70 km. Mars-GRAM 2001 is based on topography from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) and includes new MGCM data at the topographic surface. A new auxiliary program allows Mars-GRAM output to be used to compute shortwave (solar) and longwave (thermal) radiation at the surface and top of atmosphere. This memorandum includes instructions on obtaining Mars-GRAN source code and data files and for running the program. It also provides sample input and output and an example for incorporating Mars-GRAM as an atmospheric subroutine in a trajectory code.

Cancer risks in twins and singletons from twin and non-twin families.

PubMed

Chen, Lingjing; Cnattingius, Sven; Nyman Iliadou, Anastasia; Oberg, Anna Sara

2016-03-01

The unique intrauterine environment has been proposed to put twins at increased risk of certain cancers compared to singletons, still large population comparisons have generally indicated lower risks in twins. To improve the understanding of potential twin influence on cancer we compared twins to their singletons siblings, to target a unique twinning influence. Singletons from twin families were contrasted to singletons from non-twin families to further capture potential twin family influence on risk of cancer. Family relations were identified using the Swedish Multi-Generation Register. Among individuals born between 1932 and 1958, 49,156 twins and N = 35,227 singletons were identified from 18,098 unique twin families. All incident cases of specific cancer types were identified in the National Cancer Register up to the end of 2007. Standardized survival functions were estimated using weighted Cox proportional hazard regression and the corresponding cumulative risks plotted against age. Overall, primary cancers were identified in 9% and 18% of all male and female twins, compared to 11% and 19% of their male and female singleton siblings. When specific cancer sites were compared using standardized cumulative risk plots, no consistent statistically significant differences were noted either between twins and singletons of twin families or between singletons of twin and non-twin families. Despite a different intrauterine experience, twinning does not seem to have any greater negative influence on life-time risks of cancer. The findings also indicate that twin family membership has no substantial influence on cancer risks. © 2015 UICC.

Grainex Mar-M 247 Turbine Disk Life Study for NASA's High Temperature High Speed Turbine Seal Test Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Delgado, Irebert R.

2015-01-01

An experimental and analytical fatigue life study was performed on the Grainex Mar-M 247 disk used in NASA s Turbine Seal Test Facility. To preclude fatigue cracks from growing to critical size in the NASA disk bolt holes due to cyclic loading at severe test conditions, a retirement-for-cause methodology was adopted to detect and monitor cracks within the bolt holes using eddy-current inspection. For the NASA disk material that was tested, the fatigue strain-life to crack initiation at a total strain of 0.5 percent, a minimum to maximum strain ratio of 0, and a bolt hole temperature of 649 C was calculated to be 665 cycles using -99.95 percent prediction intervals. The fatigue crack propagation life was calculated to be 367 cycles after implementing a safety factor of 2 on life. Thus, the NASA disk bolt hole total life or retirement life was determined to be 1032 cycles at a crack depth of 0.501 mm. An initial NASA disk bolt hole inspection at 665 cycles is suggested with 50 cycle inspection intervals thereafter to monitor fatigue crack growth.

InSight/SEIS@Mars Educational program : Sharing the InSight NASA mission and the Seismic Discovery of Mars with a International Network of classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lognonne, P. H.; Berenguer, J. L.; Sauron, A.; Denton, P.; Carrer, D.; Taber, J.; Bravo, T. K.; Gaboriaud, A.; Houston Jones, J.; Banerdt, W. B.; Martinuzzi, J. M.

2015-12-01

The InSIght mission will deploy in September 2016 a Geophysical Station on Mars, equipped with a suite of geophysical instruments, including 3 axis Very Broad Band Seismometer, 3 axis Short Period Seismometer, 3 axis Flux gate Magnetometer, Heat flow probe, geodetic beacon, infrasound/microbarometer, wind sensors and cameras. As for all NASA missions, Children and teenagers will be associated to the mission in the framework of the K12 InSight program, part of it being associated to the SEIS instrument.The two faces of the InSight/SEIS Education program are directed toward the promotion of Space Technologies and of Space Science.For Space technologies, this has already started with the InSight Elysium Educational project. The goal of the project, supported by CNES and performed by Technical High School near Toulouse, was the fabrication of a full scale mockup of the lander (see more at https://jeunes.cnes.fr/fr/elysium-le-jumeau-terrestre-dinsight ). The mockup was exhibited during the June, 2015 Paris air show. More than 300 students participated to the Elysium project.For Space Science, this will be made with the SEIS@Mars Educational project. Its plan is to transmit the SEIS data to a network of several hundred of middle and high schools worldwide, associated to existing "seismo(graph) at school" programs in the United States (https://www.iris.edu/hq/sis), France (www.edusismo.org) Switzerland (www.seismoatschool.ethz.ch) and United Kingdom (http://www.bgs.ac.uk/schoolseismology/). If the transmission of these data to the SEIS@school network will be automatic after their release by the NASA Planetary Data System, an earlier transmission will be made, especially after mid 2017, but also before through the integration of selected Schools to the project activities: the selected classrooms will perform the same activities as the project scientists. They will have to process rapidly the proprietary data in order to identify MarsQuake(s) and will be allowed to perform

Mars Sample Return Architecture Overview

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edwards, C. D.; Vijendran, S.

2018-04-01

NASA and ESA are exploring potential concepts for a Sample Retrieval Lander and Earth Return Orbiter that could return samples planned to be collected and cached by the Mars 2020 rover mission. We provide an overview of the Mars Sample Return architecture.

Multiple Instruments Used for Mars Carbon Estimate

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-09-02

Researchers estimating the amount of carbon held in the ground at the largest known carbonate-containing deposit on Mars utilized data from three different NASA Mars orbiters. Each image in this pair covers the same area about 36 miles (58 kilometers) wide in the Nili Fossae plains region of Mars' northern hemisphere. The tally of carbon content in the rocks of this region is a key piece in solving a puzzle of how the Martian atmosphere has changed over time. Carbon dioxide from the atmosphere on early Mars reacted with surface rocks to form carbonate, thinning the atmosphere. The image on the left presents data from the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) instrument on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter. The color coding indicates thermal inertia -- the property of how quickly a surface material heats up or cools off. Sand, for example (blue hues), cools off quicker after sundown than bedrock (red hues) does. The color coding in the image on the right presents data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. From the brightness at many different wavelengths, CRISM data can indicate what minerals are present on the surface. In the color coding used here, green hues are consistent with carbonate-bearing materials, while brown or yellow hues are olivine-bearing sands and locations with purple hues are basaltic in composition. The gray scale base map is a mosaic of daytime THEMIS infrared images. Annotations point to areas with different surface compositions. The scale bar indicates 20 kilometers (12.4 miles). http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19816

Twin Legacies: Victor and Vincent McKusick/Twin Studies: Twinning Rates I; Twinning Rates II; MZ Twin Discordance for Russell-Silver Syndrome; Twins' Language Skills/Headlines: Babies Born to Identical Twin Couples; Identity Exchange; Death of Princess Ashraf (Twin); Yahoo CEO Delivers Identical Twins.

PubMed

Segal, Nancy L

2016-04-01

The lives of the illustrious monozygotic (MZ) twins, Victor A. and Vincent L. McKusick, are described. Victor earned the distinction as the 'Father of Medical Genetics', while Vincent was a legendary Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Court. This dual biographical account is followed by two timely reports of twinning rates, a study of MZ twin discordance for Russell-Silver Syndrome (RSS) and a study of twins' language skills. Twin stories in the news include babies born to identical twin couples, a case of switched identity, the death of Princess Ashraf (Twin) and a new mother of twins who is also Yahoo's CEO.

Flight Testing the Landing Radar for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-06-21

A NASA Dryden Flight Research Center F/A-18 852 aircraft performs a roll during June 2011 flight tests of a Mars landing radar. A test model of the landing radar for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission is inside a pod under the aircraft left wing.

Segments on Western Rim of Endeavour Crater, Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-04-19

This orbital image of the western rim of Mars' Endeavour Crater covers an area about 5 miles (8 kilometers) east-west by about 9 miles (14 kilometers) north-south and indicates the names of some of the raised segments of the rim. NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity arrived at Endeavour in 2011 after exploring smaller craters to the northwest during its first six years on Mars. It initially explored the "Cape York" segment, then headed south. It reached the northern end of "Cape Tribulation" in late 2014 and the southern tip of that segment in April 2017. A key destination in the "Cape Byron" segment is "Perseverance Valley," where the rover team plans to investigate whether the valley was carved by water, wind or a debris flow initiated by water. This image is from the Context Camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, California, built and operates that camera. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, built and operates Opportunity. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21490

Simulating the Current Water Cycle with the NASA Ames Mars Global Climate Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kahre, M. A.; Haberle, R. M.; Hollingsworth, J. L.; Brecht, A. S.; Urata, R. A.; Montmessin, F.

2017-12-01

The water cycle is a critical component of the current Mars climate system, and it is now widely recognized that water ice clouds significantly affect the nature of the simulated water cycle. Two processes are key to implementing clouds in a Mars global climate model (GCM): the microphysical processes of formation and dissipation, and their radiative effects on atmospheric heating/cooling rates. Together, these processes alter the thermal structure, change the atmospheric dynamics, and regulate inter-hemispheric transport. We have made considerable progress using the NASA Ames Mars GCM to simulate the current-day water cycle with radiatively active clouds. Cloud fields from our baseline simulation are in generally good agreement with observations. The predicted seasonal extent and peak IR optical depths are consistent MGS/TES observations. Additionally, the thermal response to the clouds in the aphelion cloud belt (ACB) is generally consistent with observations and other climate model predictions. Notably, there is a distinct gap in the predicted clouds over the North Residual Cap (NRC) during local summer, but the clouds reappear in this simulation over the NRC earlier than the observations indicate. Polar clouds are predicted near the seasonal CO2 ice caps, but the column thicknesses of these clouds are generally too thick compared to observations. Our baseline simulation is dry compared to MGS/TES-observed water vapor abundances, particularly in the tropics and subtropics. These areas of disagreement appear to be a consistent with other current water cycle GCMs. Future avenues of investigation will target improving our understanding of what controls the vertical extent of clouds and the apparent seasonal evolution of cloud particle sizes within the ACB.

Clay Minerals in Mawrth Vallis Region of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

This map showing the location of some clay minerals in of a portion of the Mawrth Vallis region of Mars covers an area about 10 kilometers (6.2 mile) wide. The map is draped over a topographical model that exaggerates the vertical dimension tenfold.

The mineral mapping information comes from an image taken on Sept. 21, 2007, by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM). Iron-magnesium phyllosilicate is shown in red. Aluminum phyllosyllicate is shown in blue. Hydrated silica and a ferrous iron phase are shown in yellow/green.

The topographical information comes from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter instrument on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor orbiter.

Mawrth Vallis is an outflow channel centered near 24.7 degrees north latitude, 339.5 degrees east longitude, in northern highlands of Mars.

CRISM is one of six science instruments on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., the CRISM team includes expertise from universities, government agencies and small businesses in the United States and abroad. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the orbiter.

Mars Odyssey View of Morning Clouds in Canyon

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-04-05

Light blue clouds fill Coprates Chasma on Mars, part of Valles Marineris, the vast Grand Canyon of Mars. The clouds are mostly ice crystals and they appear blue in color in this image from NASA Mars Odyssey.

NASA Lunar and Planetary Mapping and Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Day, B. H.; Law, E.

2016-12-01

NASA's Lunar and Planetary Mapping and Modeling Portals provide web-based suites of interactive visualization and analysis tools to enable mission planners, planetary scientists, students, and the general public to access mapped lunar data products from past and current missions for the Moon, Mars, and Vesta. New portals for additional planetary bodies are being planned. This presentation will recap significant enhancements to these toolsets during the past year and look forward to the results of the exciting work currently being undertaken. Additional data products and tools continue to be added to the Lunar Mapping and Modeling Portal (LMMP). These include both generalized products as well as polar data products specifically targeting potential sites for the Resource Prospector mission. Current development work on LMMP also includes facilitating mission planning and data management for lunar CubeSat missions, and working with the NASA Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office's Lunar Apollo Sample database in order to help better visualize the geographic contexts from which samples were retrieved. A new user interface provides, among other improvements, significantly enhanced 3D visualizations and navigation. Mars Trek, the project's Mars portal, has now been assigned by NASA's Planetary Science Division to support site selection and analysis for the Mars 2020 Rover mission as well as for the Mars Human Landing Exploration Zone Sites. This effort is concentrating on enhancing Mars Trek with data products and analysis tools specifically requested by the proposing teams for the various sites. Also being given very high priority by NASA Headquarters is Mars Trek's use as a means to directly involve the public in these upcoming missions, letting them explore the areas the agency is focusing upon, understand what makes these sites so fascinating, follow the selection process, and get caught up in the excitement of exploring Mars. The portals also serve as

News and Views: NASA puts JWST back on track, but ExoMars collaboration looks unlikely; Marsquakes happening yesterday, geologically; UFOs from black holes control shape of galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2012-04-01

NASA's funding plans put the James Webb Space Telescope firmly on track for a launch in 2018, to widespread relief, but the essentially flat funding settlement for 2013 overall means something has to go. Planetary science seems hardest hit, with the especial blow for European planetary scientists of NASA pulling out of ExoMars, the ESA-led mission to look for signs of life on Mars. Images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment have shown boulders displaced by seismic activity on Mars in the past few million years, and possibly much more recently than that. The bigger the supermassive black hole at the centre of a galaxy, the faster the stars in the galactic bulge rotate. Why this should be so has been something of a puzzle, but now a mechanism that is both powerful and common enough to do the job has been identified.

Ongoing Mars Missions: Extended Mission Plans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zurek, Richard; Diniega, Serina; Crisp, Joy; Fraeman, Abigail; Golombek, Matt; Jakosky, Bruce; Plaut, Jeff; Senske, David A.; Tamppari, Leslie; Thompson, Thomas W.; Vasavada, Ashwin R.

2016-10-01

Many key scientific discoveries in planetary science have been made during extended missions. This is certainly true for the Mars missions both in orbit and on the planet's surface. Every two years, ongoing NASA planetary missions propose investigations for the next two years. This year, as part of the 2016 Planetary Sciences Division (PSD) Mission Senior Review, the Mars Odyssey (ODY) orbiter project submitted a proposal for its 7th extended mission, the Mars Exploration Rover (MER-B) Opportunity submitted for its 10th, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for its 4th, and the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover and the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MVN) orbiter for their 2nd extended missions, respectively. Continued US participation in the ongoing Mars Express Mission (MEX) was also proposed. These missions arrived at Mars in 2001, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2014, and 2003, respectively. Highlights of proposed activities include systematic observations of the surface and atmosphere in twilight (early morning and late evening), building on a 13-year record of global mapping (ODY); exploration of a crater rim gully and interior of Endeavour Crater, while continuing to test what can and cannot be seen from orbit (MER-B); refocused observations of ancient aqueous deposits and polar cap interiors, while adding a 6th Mars year of change detection in the atmosphere and the surface (MRO); exploration and sampling by a rover of mineralogically diverse strata of Mt. Sharp and of atmospheric methane in Gale Crater (MSL); and further characterization of atmospheric escape under different solar conditions (MVN). As proposed, these activities follow up on previous discoveries (e.g., recurring slope lineae, habitable environments), while expanding spatial and temporal coverage to guide new detailed observations. An independent review panel evaluated these proposals, met with project representatives in May, and made recommendations to NASA in June 2016. In this

Polygon Patterned Ground on Mars and on Earth

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

Some high-latitude areas on Mars (left) and Earth (right) exhibit similarly patterned ground where shallow fracturing has drawn polygons on the surface.

This patterning may result from cycles of contraction and expansion.

The left image shows ground within the targeted landing area NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander before the winter frost had entirely disappeared from the surface.

The bright ice in shallow crevices accentuates the area's polygonal fracturing pattern. The polygons are a few meters (several feet) across.

The image is a small portion of an exposure taken in March 2008 by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

The image on the right is an aerial view of similarly patterned ground in Antarctica.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo.

Search for the Mars 2 Debris Field

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this image to aid in the search for the missing lander, Mars 2. If the debris field is found, it could serve as a future landing location to study the effects of crash landing on the Martian surface. Despite the recent successes of missions landing on Mars, like the Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity) or the arrival of new satellites, such as India's MOM orbiter, the Red Planet is also a graveyard of failed missions. The Soviet Mars 2 lander was the first man-made object to touch the surface of the Red Planet when it crashed landed on 27 November 1971. It is believed that the descent stage malfunctioned after the lander entered the atmosphere at too steep an angle. Attempts to contact the probe after the crash were unsuccessful. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA18888

Subsonic Round and Rectangular Twin Jet Flow Effects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bozak, Rick; Wernet, Mark

2014-01-01

Subsonic and supersonic aircraft concepts proposed by NASAs Fundamental Aeronautics Program have integrated propulsion systems with asymmetric nozzles. The asymmetry in the exhaust of these propulsion systems creates asymmetric flow and acoustic fields. The flow asymmetries investigated in the current study are from two parallel round, 2:1, and 8:1 aspect ratio rectangular jets at the same nozzle conditions. The flow field was measured with streamwise and cross-stream particle image velocimetry (PIV). A large dataset of single and twin jet flow field measurements was acquired at subsonic jet conditions. The effects of twin jet spacing and forward flight were investigated. For round, 2:1, and 8:1 rectangular twin jets at their closest spacings, turbulence levels between the two jets decreased due to enhanced jet mixing at near static conditions. When the flight Mach number was increased to 0.25, the flow around the twin jet model created a velocity deficit between the two nozzles. This velocity deficit diminished the effect of forward flight causing an increase in turbulent kinetic energy relative to a single jet. Both of these twin jet flow field effects decreased with increasing twin jet spacing relative to a single jet. These variations in turbulent kinetic energy correlate with changes in far-field sound pressure level.

Close-up of a Mars Meteorite

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-13

Close-up of a slice of a meteorite scientists have determined came from Mars. This slice will likely be used here on Earth for testing a laser instrument for NASA's Mars 2020 rover; a separate slice will go to Mars on the rover. Martian meteorites are believed to be the result of impacts to the Red Planet's surface, resulting in rock being heaved into the atmosphere. After traveling through space for eons, some of these rocks entered Earth's atmosphere. Scientists determine whether they are true Martian meteorites based on their rock and noble gas chemistry and mineralogy. The gases trapped in these meteorites bear the unique fingerprint of the Martian atmosphere, as recorded by NASA's Viking mission in 1976. The rock types also show clear signs of igneous processing not possible on smaller bodies, such as asteroids. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22246

Mars Odyssey All Stars: Bacolor Crater

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-12-09

Bacolor Crater is a magnificent impact feature about 20 kilometers 12 miles wide. This image is part of an All Star set marking the occasion of NASA Mars Odyssey as the longest-working Mars spacecraft in history.

Opportunity Late Afternoon View of Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-02-03

NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity captured this low-light raw image during the late afternoon of the rover 2,847th Martian sol Jan. 27, 2012. The rover is positioned for the Mars winter at Greeley Haven.

Boots on Mars: Earth Independent Human Exploration of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burnett, Josephine; Gill, Tracy R.; Ellis, Kim Gina

2017-01-01

This package is for the conduct of a workshop during the International Space University Space Studies Program in the summer of 2017 being held in Cork, Ireland. It gives publicly available information on NASA and international plans to move beyond low Earth orbit to Mars and discusses challenges and capabilities. This information will provide the participants a basic level of insight to develop a response on their perceived obstacles to a future vision of humans on Mars.

Anomaly Trends for Missions to Mars: Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Green, Nelson W.; Hoffman, Alan R.

2008-01-01

The long term flight operations of the Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey spacecraft give us an excellent chance to examine the operations of two long lived spacecraft in orbit around Mars during overlapping time periods. This study examined the anomalies for each mission maintained for NASA at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. By examining the anomalies each mission encountered during their multiyear missions, trends were identified related to when anomalies occurred during each mission, the types of anomalies encountered, and corrective actions taken to mitigate the effects of the anomalies. As has been discovered in previous studies the numbers of anomalies directly correlate with mission activity and show a decreasing trend with elapsed mission time. Trend analysis also identified a heavy emphasis on software as the source or solution to anomalies for both missions.

The Impact of Subsonic Twin Jets on Airport Noise

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bozak, Richard, F.

2012-01-01

Subsonic and supersonic aircraft concepts proposed through NASA s Fundamental Aeronautics Program have multiple engines mounted near one another. Engine configurations with multiple jets introduce an asymmetry to the azimuthal directivity of the jet noise. Current system noise predictions add the jet noise from each jet incoherently, therefore, twin jets are estimated by adding 3 EPNdB to the far-field noise radiated from a single jet. Twin jet effects have the ability to increase or decrease the radiated noise to different azimuthal observation locations. Experiments have shown that twin jet effects are reduced with forward flight and increasing spacings. The current experiment investigates the impact of spacing, and flight effects on airport noise for twin jets. Estimating the jet noise radiated from twin jets as that of a single jet plus 3 EPNdB may be sufficient for horizontal twin jets with an s/d of 4.4 and 5.5, where s is the center-to-center spacing and d is the jet diameter. However, up to a 3 EPNdB error could be present for jet spacings with an s/d of 2.6 and 3.2.

Opportunity Rover Nears Mars Marathon Feat

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-02-10

In February 2015, NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is approaching a cumulative driving distance on Mars equal to the length of a marathon race. This map shows the rover position relative to where it could surpass that distance.

Stationary eddies in the Mars general circulation as simulated by the NASA-Ames GCM

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barnes, J. R.; Pollack, J. B.; Haberle, Robert M.

1993-01-01

Quasistationary eddies are prominent in a large set of simulations of the Mars general circulation performed with the NASA-Ames GCM. Various spacecraft observations have at least hinted at the existence of such eddies in the Mars atmosphere. The GCM stationary eddies appear to be forced primarily by the large Mars topography, and (to a much lesser degree) by spatial variations in the surface albedo and thermal inertia. The stationary eddy circulations exhibit largest amplitudes at high altitudes (above 30-40 km) in the winter extratropical regions. In these regions they are of planetary scale, characterized largely by zonal wavenumbers 1 and 2. Southern Hemisphere winter appears to be dominated by a very strong wave 1 pattern, with both waves 1 and 2 being prominent in the Northern Hemisphere winter regime. This difference seems to be basically understandable in terms of differences in the topography in the two hemispheres. The stationary eddies in the northern winter extratropics are found to increase in amplitude with dust loading. This behavior appears to be at least partly associated with changes in the structure of the zonal-mean flow that favor a greater response to wave 1 topographic forcing. There are also strong stationary eddy circulations in the tropics and in the summer hemisphere. The eddies in the summer subtropics and extratropics arc substantially stronger in southern summer than in northern summer. The summer hemisphere stationary circulations are relatively shallow and are characterized by smaller zonal scales than those in the winter extratropics.

Cameras on Mars 2020 Rover

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-31

This image presents a selection of the 23 cameras on NASA's 2020 Mars rover. Many are improved versions of the cameras on the Curiosity rover, with a few new additions as well. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22103

NASA's Planetary Science Missions and Participations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daou, Doris; Green, James L.

2017-04-01

NASA's Planetary Science Division (PSD) and space agencies around the world are collaborating on an extensive array of missions exploring our solar system. Planetary science missions are conducted by some of the most sophisticated robots ever built. International collaboration is an essential part of what we do. NASA has always encouraged international participation on our missions both strategic (ie: Mars 2020) and competitive (ie: Discovery and New Frontiers) and other Space Agencies have reciprocated and invited NASA investigators to participate in their missions. NASA PSD has partnerships with virtually every major space agency. For example, NASA has had a long and very fruitful collaboration with ESA. ESA has been involved in the Cassini mission and, currently, NASA funded scientists are involved in the Rosetta mission (3 full instruments, part of another), BepiColombo mission (1 instrument in the Italian Space Agency's instrument suite), and the Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer mission (1 instrument and parts of two others). In concert with ESA's Mars missions NASA has an instrument on the Mars Express mission, the orbit-ground communications package on the Trace Gas Orbiter (launched in March 2016) and part of the DLR/Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer instruments going onboard the ExoMars Rover (to be launched in 2018). NASA's Planetary Science Division has continuously provided its U.S. planetary science community with opportunities to include international participation on NASA missions too. For example, NASA's Discovery and New Frontiers Programs provide U.S. scientists the opportunity to assemble international teams and design exciting, focused planetary science investigations that would deepen the knowledge of our Solar System. The PSD put out an international call for instruments on the Mars 2020 mission. This procurement led to the selection of Spain and Norway scientist leading two instruments and French scientists providing a significant portion of another

NAE Twin Otter operations in FIFE 1989

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macpherson, J. I.

1990-01-01

During the summer of 1989, the National Aeronautical Establishment (Canada) Twin Otter Atmospheric Research Aircraft was flow in support of the NASA sponsored First ISLSCP (International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project) Field Experiment called FIFE-89. Airborne measurements of the fluxes of heat, momentum, water vapor and carbon dioxide were made during 16 flow-altitude flights over the FIFE project area in central Kansas. The Twin Otter operations in FIFE are documented and details are included on the instrumentation, software, flight procedures, atmospheric conditions and analysis methods. Comparisons of Twin Otter measured fluxes are made with those determined at several surface sites and with those made by other instrumented aircraft in the FIFE-87 measurements. Airborne flux measurements are related to run length, altitude, and environmental parameters such as vegetation type, temperature, and wind speed. One night flight was run in an attempt to measure the respiration component of the CO2 flux. The use of aircraft was studied for regional observations of fluxes and to relate these to satellite radiance measurements. Run average data are presented for all 285 flux runs flown by the Twin Otter in FIFE-89. This should serve as as a working reference for scientists utilizing Twin Otter data either directly of through the FIFE data archive.

2018 Giant Dust Storm on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-06-13

This set of images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) shows a fierce, giant dust storm is kicking up on Mars, with rovers on the surface indicated as icons. The spread of the storm can be seen in the salmon-colored overlay. These images from MRO's Mars Color Imager start from May 31, when the dust event was first detected, and go through June 11, 2018. MRO creates global maps of Mars but roll maneuvers for targeted observations produce gaps in the coverage, which appear as black gores in the maps. On some days there are data drops where partial or full orbits of coverage are missing. Green and purple observed in the south polar region indicate saturated pixels. Latitude is indicated along the vertical axis. Longitude is indicated along the horizontal axis. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22519

Instrument Deployment for Mars Rovers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pedersen, Liam; Bualat, Maria; Kunz, C.; Lee, Susan; Sargent, Randy; Washington, Rich; Wright, Anne; Clancy, Daniel (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Future Mars rovers, such as the planned 2009 MSL rover, require sufficient autonomy to robustly approach rock targets and place an instrument in contact with them. It took the 1997 Sojourner Mars rover between 3 and 5 communications cycles to accomplish this. This paper describes the technologies being developed and integrated onto the NASA Ames K9 prototype Mars rover to both accomplish this in one cycle, and to extend the complexity and duration of operations that a Mars rover can accomplish without intervention from mission control.

Swedish Delegation Visits NASA Goddard

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Swedish Delegation Visits GSFC – May 3, 2017 - Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences listen to Dr. Melissa Trainer, Sample Analysis at, Mars (SAM) team member and Charles Malespin, SAM Deputy Principal Investigator and Operations Test Lead discuss research being done in the SAM lab being carried by the Curiosity Rover on the surface of Mars. Credit: NASA/Goddard/Bill Hrybyk Read more: go.nasa.gov/2p1rP0h NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Destination Mars Grand Opening

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-18

Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, left and Erisa Hines of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, try out Microsoft HoloLens mixed reality headset during a preview of the new Destination: Mars experience at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Destination: Mars gives guests an opportunity to “visit” several sites on Mars using real imagery from NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover. Based on OnSight, a tool created by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, the experience brings guests together with a holographic version of Aldrin and Curiosity rover driver Hines as they are guided to Mars using Microsoft HoloLens mixed reality headset. Photo credit: NASA/Charles Babir

Destination Mars Grand Opening

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-18

A ceremonial ribbon is cut for the opening of new Destination: Mars experience at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. From the left are Therrin Protze, chief operating officer of the visitor complex, center director Bob Cabana, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Kudo Tsunoda of Microsoft, and Jeff Norris of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. Destination: Mars gives guests an opportunity to “visit” several sites on Mars using real imagery from NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover. Based on OnSight, a tool created by JPL, the experience brings guests together with a holographic version of Aldrin as they are guided to Mars using Microsoft HoloLens mixed reality headset. Photo credit: NASA/Charles Babir

Administrator Bridenstine: InSight Will Map the Inside of Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-05

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine shares thoughts on the Mars InSight mission, the search for evidence of life beyond Earth, returning humans to the Moon and why Earth is his favorite planet. To learn more about InSight, visit https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/.

Mars Rover Concept Vehicle

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-05

The scientifically-themed Mars rover concept vehicle operates on an electric motor, powered by solar panels and a 700-volt battery. The rover separates in the middle with the front area designed for scouting and equipped with a radio and navigation provided by the Global Positioning System. The back section serves as a full laboratory which can disconnect for autonomous research. The "Summer of Mars" promotion is designed to provide guests with a better understanding of NASA's studies of the Red Planet. The builders of the rover, Parker Brothers Concepts of Port Canaveral, Florida, incorporated input into its design from NASA subject matter experts.

Overview of the MARS Laser Communications Demonstration Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edward, Bernard L.; Townes, Stephen A.; Bondurant, Roy S.; Scozzafava, Joseph J.; Boroson, Don M.; Parvin, Ben A.; Biswas, Abhijit; Pillsbury, Alan D.; Khatri, Farzana I.; Burnside, Jamie W.

2003-01-01

This paper provides an overview of the Mars Laser Communications Demonstration Project, a joint project between NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology (JPL), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL). It reviews the strawman designs for the flight and ground segments, the critical technologies required, and the concept of operations. It reports preliminary conclusions from the Mars Lasercom Study conducted at MIT/LL and on additional work done at JPL and GSFC. The lasercom flight terminal will be flown on the Mars Telecom Orbiter (MTO) to be launched by NASA in 2009, and will demonstrate a technology which has the potential of vastly improving NASA s ability to communicate throughout the solar system.

Hubble Takes Mars Portrait Near Close Approach

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Mars is looking mighty fine in this portrait nabbed by the Hubble Space Telescope on a near close approach! Read more: go.nasa.gov/1rWYiBT The Hubble Space Telescope is more well known for its picturesque views of nebulae and galaxies, but it's also useful for studying our own planets, including Mars. Hubble imaged Mars on May 12, 2016 - ten days before Mars would be on the exact opposite side of the Earth from the Sun. Bright, frosty polar caps, and clouds above a vivid, rust-colored landscape reveal Mars as a dynamic seasonal planet in this NASA Hubble Space Telescope view taken on May 12, 2016, when Mars was 50 million miles from Earth. The Hubble image reveals details as small as 20 to 30 miles across. The large, dark region at far right is Syrtis Major Planitia, one of the first features identified on the surface of the planet by seventeenth-century observers. Christiaan Huygens used this feature to measure the rotation rate of Mars. (A Martian day is about 24 hours and 37 minutes.) Today we know that Syrtis Major is an ancient, inactive shield volcano. Late-afternoon clouds surround its summit in this view. A large oval feature to the south of Syrtis Major is the bright Hellas Planitia basin. About 1,100 miles across and nearly five miles deep, it was formed about 3.5 billion years ago by an asteroid impact. The orange area in the center of the image is Arabia Terra, a vast upland region in northern Mars that covers about 2,800 miles. The landscape is densely cratered and heavily eroded, indicating that it could be among the oldest terrains on the planet. Dried river canyons (too small to be seen here) wind through the region and empty into the large northern lowlands. Credit: NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA), J. Bell (ASU), and M. Wolff (Space Science Institute) #nasagoddard #mars #hubble #space NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics

Micro-Pressure Sensors for Future Mars Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Catling, David C.

1996-01-01

The joint research interchange effort was directed at the following principal areas: u further development of NASA-Ames' Mars Micro-meteorology mission concept as a viable NASA space mission especially with regard to the science and instrument specifications u interaction with the flight team from NASA's New Millennium 'Deep-Space 2' (DS-2) mission with regard to selection and design of micro-pressure sensors for Mars u further development of micro-pressure sensors suitable for Mars The research work undertaken in the course of the Joint Research Interchange should be placed in the context of an ongoing planetary exploration objective to characterize the climate system on Mars. In particular, a network of small probes globally-distributed on the surface of the planet has often been cited as the only way to address this particular science goal. A team from NASA Ames has proposed such a mission called the Micrometeorology mission, or 'Micro-met' for short. Surface pressure data are all that are required, in principle, to calculate the Martian atmospheric circulation, provided that simultaneous orbital measurements of the atmosphere are also obtained. Consequently, in the proposed Micro-met mission a large number of landers would measure barometric pressure at various locations around Mars, each equipped with a micro-pressure sensor. Much of the time on the JRI was therefore spent working with the engineers and scientists concerned with Micro-met to develop this particular mission concept into a more realistic proposition.

Mars Odyssey All Stars: Cerberus Crack

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-12-09

Geological faulting has opened cracks in the Cerberus region that slice through flat plains and mesas alike. This image is part of an All Star set marking the occasion of NASA Mars Odyssey as the longest-working Mars spacecraft in history.

Mars Odyssey All Stars: Polar Dunes

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-12-09

A sea of dark dunes, sculpted by the wind into long lines, surrounds the northern polar cap covering an area as big as Texas in this false-color image from NASA Mars Odyssey, the longest-working Mars spacecraft in history.

The USC Adult Twin Cohorts: International Twin Study and California Twin Program.

PubMed

Cozen, Wendy; Hwang, Amie E; Cockburn, Myles G; Hamilton, Ann S; Zadnick, John; Mack, Thomas M

2013-02-01

The study of twin subjects permits the documentation of crude heritability and may promote the identification of specific causal alleles. We believe that at the current time, the chief research advantage of twins as subjects, especially monozygotic twins, is that the commonality of their genetic and cultural identity simplifies the interpretation of biological associations. In order to study genetic and environmental determinants of cancer and chronic diseases, we developed two twin registries, maintained at the University of Southern California: The International Twin Study (ITS) and the California Twin Program (CTP). The ITS is a volunteer registry of twins with cancer and chronic disease consisting of 17,245 twin pairs affected by cancer and chronic disease, respectively, ascertained by advertising in periodicals from 1980-1991. The CTP is a population-based registry of California-born twin pairs ascertained by linking the California birth records to the State Department of Motor Vehicles. Over 51,000 individual California twins representing 36,965 pairs completed and returned 16-page questionnaires. Cancer diagnoses in the California twins are updated by regular linkage to the California Cancer Registry. Over 5,000 cancer patients are represented in the CTP. Twins from both registries have participated extensively in studies of breast cancer, melanoma, lymphoma, multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, diabetes mellitus type 1, mammographic density, smoking, and other traits and conditions.

Preparing for Mars: The Evolvable Mars Campaign 'Proving Ground' Approach

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bobskill, Marianne R.; Lupisella, Mark L.; Mueller, Rob P.; Sibille, Laurent; Vangen, Scott; Williams-Byrd, Julie

2015-01-01

As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) prepares to extend human presence beyond Low Earth Orbit, we are in the early stages of planning missions within the framework of an Evolvable Mars Campaign. Initial missions would be conducted in near-Earth cis-lunar space and would eventually culminate in extended duration crewed missions on the surface of Mars. To enable such exploration missions, critical technologies and capabilities must be identified, developed, and tested. NASA has followed a principled approach to identify critical capabilities and a "Proving Ground" approach is emerging to address testing needs. The Proving Ground is a period subsequent to current International Space Station activities wherein exploration-enabling capabilities and technologies are developed and the foundation is laid for sustained human presence in space. The Proving Ground domain essentially includes missions beyond Low Earth Orbit that will provide increasing mission capability while reducing technical risks. Proving Ground missions also provide valuable experience with deep space operations and support the transition from "Earth-dependence" to "Earth-independence" required for sustainable space exploration. A Technology Development Assessment Team identified a suite of critical technologies needed to support the cadence of exploration missions. Discussions among mission planners, vehicle developers, subject-matter-experts, and technologists were used to identify a minimum but sufficient set of required technologies and capabilities. Within System Maturation Teams, known challenges were identified and expressed as specific performance gaps in critical capabilities, which were then refined and activities required to close these critical gaps were identified. Analysis was performed to identify test and demonstration opportunities for critical technical capabilities across the Proving Ground spectrum of missions. This suite of critical capabilities is expected to

Mars: On the Path Or In The Way?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherwood, Brent

2012-01-01

Explore Mars may not be the highest and best use of government-? funded human space flight. However, Explore Mars is pervasively accepted as the ultimate goal for human space flight. This meme has become refractory within the human space flight community despite dramatic contextual changes since Apollo: human space flight is no longer central to commonly-?held national priorities, NASA's fraction of the federal budget has diminished 8 fold, over 60 enabling technology challenges have been identified, and the stunning achievements of robotic Mars exploration have accelerated. The Explore Mars vision has not kept pace with these changes.An unprecedented budgetary commitment would have to be sustained for an unprecedented number of decades to achieve the Explore Mars goal. Further, the goal's justification as uniquely able to definitively determine Mars habitability is brittle, and not driving current planning in any case; yet NASA owns the choice of this goal and has authority to change it. Three alternative goals for government investment in human space flight meet NASA's own expressed rationale at least as well as Explore Mars, some with far greater capacity to regain the cultural centrality of human space flight and to grow by attracting private capital. At a minimum the human space flight advocacy community should address the pragmatics of choosing such a vulnerable goal.

Human Mars Landing Site and Impacts on Mars Surface Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bussey, Ben; Hoffman, Stephen J.

2016-01-01

NASA has begun a process to identify and discuss candidate locations where humans could land, live and work on the Martian surface. These locations are referred to as Exploration Zones (EZs). Given current mission concepts, an EZ is a collection of Regions of Interest (ROIs) that are located within approximately 100 kilometers of a centralized landing site. ROIs are areas that are relevant for scientific investigation and/or development/maturation of capabilities and resources necessary for a sustainable human presence. The EZ also contains a landing site and a habitation site that will be used by multiple human crews during missions to explore and utilize the ROIs within the EZ. These candidate EZs will be used by NASA as part of a multi-year process of determining where and how humans could explore Mars. In the near term this process includes: (a) identifying locations that would maximize the potential science return from future human exploration missions, (b) identifying locations with the potential for resources required to support humans, (c) developing concepts and engineering systems needed by future human crews to conduct operations within an EZ, and (d) identifying key characteristics of the proposed candidate EZs that cannot be evaluated using existing data sets, thus helping to define precursor measurements needed in advance of human missions. Existing and future robotic spacecraft will be tasked to gather data from specific Mars surface sites within the representative EZs to support these NASA activities. The proposed paper will describe NASA's initial steps for identifying and evaluating candidate EZs and ROIs. This includes plans for the "First Landing Site/Exploration Zone Workshop for Human Missions to the Surface of Mars" to be held in October 2015 at which proposals for EZs and ROIs will be presented and discussed. It will also include a discussion of how these considerations are (or will be) taken into account as future robotic Mars missions are

Advantages of a Modular Mars Surface Habitat Approach

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rucker, Michelle A.; Hoffman, Stephan J.; Andrews, Alida; Watts, Kevin

2018-01-01

Early crewed Mars mission concepts developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) assumed a single, large habitat would house six crew members for a 500-day Mars surface stay. At the end of the first mission, all surface equipment, including the habitat, -would be abandoned and the process would be repeated at a different Martian landing site. This work was documented in a series of NASA publications culminating with the Mars Design Reference Mission 5.0 (NASA-SP-2009-566). The Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC) explored whether re-using surface equipment at a single landing site could be more affordable than the Apollo-style explore-abandon-repeat mission cadence. Initial EMC assumptions preserved the single, monolithic habitat, the only difference being a new requirement to reuse the surface habitat for multiple expedition crews. A trade study comparing a single large habitat versus smaller, modular habitats leaned towards the monolithic approach as more mass-efficient. More recent work has focused on the operational aspects of building up Mars surface infrastructure over multiple missions, and has identified compelling advantages of the modular approach that should be considered before making a final decision. This paper explores Mars surface mission operational concepts and integrated system analysis, and presents an argument for the modular habitat approach.

MIMOS II on MER One Year of Mossbauer Spectroscopy on the Surface of Mars: From Jarosite at Meridiani Planum to Goethite at Gusev Crater

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klingelhoefer, G.; Rodionov, D. S.; Morris, R. V.; Schroeder, C.; deSouza, P. A.; Ming, D. W.; Yen, A. S.; Bernhardt, B.; Renz, F.; Fleischer, I.

2005-01-01

The miniaturized Mossbauer (MB) spectrometer MIMOS II [1] is part of the Athena payload of NASA s twin Mars Exploration Rovers "Spirit" (MER-A) and "Opportunity" (MER-B). It determines the Fe-bearing mineralogy of Martian soils and rocks at the Rovers respective landing sites, Gusev crater and Meridiani Planum. Both spectrometers performed successfully during first year of operation. Total integration time is about 49 days for MERA (79 samples) and 34 days for MER-B (85 samples). For curiosity it might be interesting to mention that the total odometry of the oscillating part of the MB drive exceeds 35 km for both rovers.

Rhythmic Layering in Danielson Crater on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-21

Rhythmic patterns of sedimentary layering in Danielson Crater on Mars result from periodic changes in climate related to changes in tilt of the planet in this image was taken by NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

NASA Lunar and Planetary Mapping and Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Day, Brian; Law, Emily

2016-10-01

NASA's Lunar and Planetary Mapping and Modeling Portals provide web-based suites of interactive visualization and analysis tools to enable mission planners, planetary scientists, students, and the general public to access mapped lunar data products from past and current missions for the Moon, Mars, and Vesta. New portals for additional planetary bodies are being planned. This presentation will recap some of the enhancements to these products during the past year and preview work currently being undertaken.New data products added to the Lunar Mapping and Modeling Portal (LMMP) include both generalized products as well as polar data products specifically targeting potential sites for the Resource Prospector mission. New tools being developed include traverse planning and surface potential analysis. Current development work on LMMP also includes facilitating mission planning and data management for lunar CubeSat missions. Looking ahead, LMMP is working with the NASA Astromaterials Office to integrate with their Lunar Apollo Sample database to help better visualize the geographic contexts of retrieved samples. All of this will be done within the framework of a new user interface which, among other improvements, will provide significantly enhanced 3D visualizations and navigation.Mars Trek, the project's Mars portal, has now been assigned by NASA's Planetary Science Division to support site selection and analysis for the Mars 2020 Rover mission as well as for the Mars Human Landing Exploration Zone Sites, and is being enhanced with data products and analysis tools specifically requested by the proposing teams for the various sites. NASA Headquarters is giving high priority to Mars Trek's use as a means to directly involve the public in these upcoming missions, letting them explore the areas the agency is focusing upon, understand what makes these sites so fascinating, follow the selection process, and get caught up in the excitement of exploring Mars.The portals also

Phoenix Mars Lander with Solar Arrays Open

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

NASA's next Mars-bound spacecraft, the Phoenix Mars Lander, was partway through assembly and testing at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, in September 2006, progressing toward an August 2007 launch from Florida. In this photograph, spacecraft specialists work on the lander after its fan-like circular solar arrays have been spread open for testing. The arrays will be in this configuration when the spacecraft is active on the surface of Mars.

Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. It will dig into the surface, test scooped-up samples for carbon-bearing compounds and serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars.

The Phoenix mission is led by Principal Investigator Peter H. Smith of the University of Arizona, Tucson, with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and development partnership with Lockheed Martin Space Systems. International contributions for Phoenix are provided by the Canadian Space Agency, the University of Neuchatel (Switzerland), the University of Copenhagen, and the Max Planck Institute in Germany. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Heat Shield Installation

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-11

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft undergoes spin testing. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Heat Shield Installation

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-11

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, technicians complete the installation of the heat shield on the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Heat Shield Installation

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-11

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, technicians prepare to install the heat shield on the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Heat Shield Installation

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-11

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, the heat shield for the Phoenix Mars Lander is moved into position for installation on the spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Heat Shield Installation

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-11

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, technicians install the heat shield on the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA's Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Opportunity Surroundings After 25 Miles on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-14

This July 29, 2014, panorama combines several images from the navigation camera on NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity to show the rover surroundings after surpassing 25 miles 40.23 kilometers of total driving on Mars.

Mars at 43 Million Miles From Earth

NASA Image and Video Library

2001-06-26

NASA Earth-orbiting Hubble Space Telescope took the picture on June 26, 2001 when Mars was approximately 43 million miles 68 million km from Earth -- the closest Mars has ever been to Earth since 1988.

Visualizing a Solar Storm's Effect on Mars Atmosphere (Illustration)

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-13

This illustration depicts charged particles from a solar storm stripping away charged particles of Mars' atmosphere, one of the processes of Martian atmosphere loss studied by NASA's MAVEN mission, beginning in 2014. Unlike Earth, Mars lacks a global magnetic field that could deflect charged particles emanating from the Sun. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22076

NASA STEM Event

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-01-19

School children watch a TV program showing how the Mars rover Curiosity landed on Mars during an Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education event held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Arlington, VA on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013. Students were able to meet with Astronaut Melvin, conduct experiments, build their own space jab, and touch a mockup space suit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Parachute Opening During Tests for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-04-22

Testing during March and April 2009 inside the world largest wind tunnel, at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., qualified the parachute for NASA next Mars rover. The parachute for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, to be launched in 2011 and land on Mars in 2012, is the largest ever built to fly on an extraterrestrial mission. This image shows the qualification-test parachute beginning to open a few seconds after it was launched from a mortar into an 80-mile-per-hour (36-meter-per-second) wind. The parachute uses a configuration called disk-gap-band. It has 80 suspension lines, measures more than 50 meters (165 feet) in length, and opens to a diameter of nearly 16 meters (51 feet). Most of the orange and white fabric is nylon, though a small disk of heavier polyester is used near the vent in the apex of the canopy due to higher stresses there. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA11992

Parachute Opening During Tests for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-04-22

Testing during March and April 2009 inside the world largest wind tunnel, at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., qualified the parachute for NASA next Mars rover. The parachute for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, to be launched in 2011 and land on Mars in 2012, is the largest ever built to fly on an extraterrestrial mission. This image shows the qualification-test parachute beginning to open a few seconds after it was launched from a mortar into an 80-mile-per-hour (36-meter-per-second) wind. The parachute uses a configuration called disk-gap-band. It has 80 suspension lines, measures more than 50 meters (165 feet) in length, and opens to a diameter of nearly 16 meters (51 feet). Most of the orange and white fabric is nylon, though a small disk of heavier polyester is used near the vent in the apex of the canopy due to higher stresses there. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA11993

Parachute Testing for Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-12-20

The team developing the landing system for NASA Mars Science Laboratory tested the deployment of an early parachute design in mid-October 2007 inside the world largest wind tunnel, at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California.

First Imaging of Laser-Induced Spark on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-07-16

NASA Curiosity Mars rover used the Mars Hand Lens Imager MAHLI camera on its arm to catch the first images of sparks produced by the rover laser being shot at a rock on Mars. The left image is from before the laser zapped this rock, called Nova.