Much of Mars’s surface is covered by fine-grained materials that hide the bedrock. The above bedrock is mostly exposed and it is in these areas that micrometeorites likely to accumulate.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
It’s established Mars was once a planet with surface-level water. So with multiple MARS missions starting next year, the key to seeking out martian life may instead lie in the contents of its ‘dust’.
A Falcon 9 SpaceX heavy rocket lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Feb. 6, 2018.
AP Photo/ John Raoux
It has been 10 years since Elon Musk’s SpaceX launched the commercial space age. What hurdles must be overcome before private companies begin exploring, colonizing and mining other planets?
We can create the right kind of food plants to survive on Mars.
Shutterstock/SergeyDV
If humans are to live on Mars they will need a stable supply of food. Earth plants are not suited to the Mars climate but we can engineer plants that are.
There is water on Mars - but it’s buried, and frozen.
from www.shutterstock.com
Space exploration is exciting - but there are barriers for humans hoping to visit and even stay on planets. Buried ice on Mars could be a water source for interplanetary visits of the future.
Working out how Mars’s carbon dioxide was turned into rock could help with carbon capture efforts on our own planet.
Unlike science fiction films featuring grotesque aliens and faraway galaxies, Ridley Scott’s The Martian depicts a sci-fi space mission that could soon be science fact.
20th Century Fox
NASA has set a target date of 2030 for a manned mission to Mars. With no real scientific breakthroughs needed, success depends on developing the proper technology.
The mysterious ephemeral dark streaks on Mars.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona
New research suggests that salty water exists on Mars in the summer months. But that wouldn’t be the first time we hear of water on the red planet. So what’s new and what isn’t?