Category Archives: Reports

InSight update by Emily Lakdawalla, The Planetary Society

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

A couple more tiny quakes and heat probe progress: It’s been 3 months since my last check-in with the InSight mission. In that time, they’ve detected a few more very small Marsquakes, including the largest yet, coming in at a … Continue reading →

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What makes martian methane vanish so quickly?

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

The processes behind the release and consumption of methane on Mars have been discussed since methane was measured for the first time for approximately 15 years ago. Now, an interdisciplinary research group from Aarhus University has proposed a previously overlooked … Continue reading →

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Curiosity update: Exploring Harlaw Rise

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

Sol 2454, July 1, 2019, update by MSL scientist Melissa Rice: Curiosity is currently near the top of Harlaw Rise, having made a slight diversion from the southward drive through the clay-bearing unit to explore the nice exposures of rocks … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: The erosional window

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

The erosional window. Layers are windows to the past. This observation will help measure layer thicknesses and layer orientations in this deep erosional window into Niesten Crater. This window appears to be deeper than others in this crater. HiRISE Picture … Continue reading →

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SuperCam installed on Mars 2020 rover

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

Engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, have installed the SuperCam Mast Unit onto the Mars 2020 rover. The instrument’s camera, laser and spectrometers can identify the chemical and mineral makeup of targets as small as a pencil … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Splashy ejecta from Tooting Crater

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, July 3, 2019. Today’s VIS image shows part of the ejecta blanket of Tooting Crater. Named for London suburb, Tooting Crater is a large, relatively fresh impact crater located west of Olympus Mons. (For more … Continue reading →

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Mars 2020 rover: Landing with terrain-relative navigation

Posted on July 2, 2019 by rburnham

The view of the Sea of Tranquility rising up to meet Neil Armstrong during the first astronaut landing on the Moon was not what Apollo 11 mission planners had intended. They had hoped to send the lunar module Eagle toward … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: A valley in Libya Montes

Posted on July 2, 2019 by rburnham

A valley in Libya Montes. The objective of this observation is to examine what looks like a valley with a channel on its bed. The Libya Montes are a highland terrain on Mars up-lifted by the giant impact that created … Continue reading →

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InSight: Uncovering ‘the Mole’

Posted on July 2, 2019 by rburnham

Behold the “mole”: The heat-sensing spike that NASA’s InSight lander deployed on the Martian surface is now visible. Last week, the spacecraft’s robotic arm successfully removed the support structure of the mole, which has been unable to dig, and placed … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Streamlined islands in Athabasca Valles

Posted on July 2, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, July 2, 2019. This VIS image shows part of the channel called Athabasca Valles. Several streamlined islands are visible at the top of the image. The source of the flood was likely an outburst of … Continue reading →

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