Category Archives: Reports

HiRISE: Slope monitoring

Posted on May 27, 2019 by rburnham

Slope monitoring. The recurring slope lineae (RSL) in this image are large and have high contrast. Most importantly, we see multiple examples of RSL flowing on bedrock, alternating between bedrock and regolith and bedrock and regolith, and regolith only. Do … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

ExoMars rover PanCam filter set

Posted on May 27, 2019 by rburnham

This may look like a collection of colourful contact lenses and in some respects there are some similarities: these are the filters through which the ExoMars rover – Rosalind Franklin – will view Mars in visible and near infrared wavelengths. … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

THEMIS: Frost patches near Mangala Fossa

Posted on May 27, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, May 27, 2019. This false-color image shows part of Mangala Fossa – the linear depression in the bottom half of the image. The bright blue tones in this image are thought to be surface frost. … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Curiosity update: Drill no go — time for Plan B

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

Sols 2416-18, May 24, 2019, update by MSL scientist Catherine O’Connell-Cooper: At the start of today’s planning, the Geology theme group (GEO) had a major decision to make, whether to drill here at “Broad Cairn” or not. Unfortunately, APXS data … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Comet chemistry suggests way to get breathable oxygen on Mars

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

Science fiction stories are chock full of terraforming schemes and oxygen generators for a very good reason—we humans need molecular oxygen (O2) to breathe, and space is essentially devoid of it. Even on other planets with thick atmospheres, O2 is … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Mars sand moves under different conditions than Earth sand

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

Wind has shaped the face of Mars for millennia, but its exact role in piling up sand dunes, carving out rocky escarpments or filling impact craters has eluded scientists until now. In the most detailed analysis of how sands move … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off

Mars 2020 drops in on Death Valley

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

On a test flight in Death Valley, California, an Airbus helicopter carried an engineering model of the Lander Vision System (LVS) that will help guide NASA’s next Mars mission to a safe touchdown on the Red Planet. During the flight … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

North polar residual ice cap has recent snow-like surface

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

[Editor’s note: From a paper by Jonathan Bapst and three co-authors recently published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.] Thermophysical Properties of the North Polar Residual Cap using Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer • We identify residual water ice … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: In the land of Terra Sabaea

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

In the land of Terra Sabaea. The rationale for this observation is to look at the fluvial features and diverse composition of the terrain. Terra Sabaea is fairly large and parts of it are found in five quadrangle regions of … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Mars 2020 gets a dose of space — on Earth

Posted on May 24, 2019 by rburnham

NASA’s Mars 2020 spacecraft has completed acoustic and thermal vacuum (TVAC) testing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The acoustic test of the spacecraft that will carry the Mars 2020 rover to a soft touchdown in Jezero Crater … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off