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Mars
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robots
tricorder
Scientists Build Portable Life-Signs Detector: Tricorder 1.0
A team of US and UK scientists have invented a portable scanner that may be useful in the hunt for life on Mars. And it sounds a whole lot like a Star Trek tricorder: it uses a beam of ultraviolet laser light and detects fluorescence from organic molecules, so it works remotely and doesn't damage samples. Under simulated-Mars conditions, they've used it to detect polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (found on comets, thought to be building-blocks of life) in masses as small as 1.5 micrograms. Plus they think the tech could be adapted to be rugged and fitted onto a future Mars rover. Just wait for the handheld version, and for an astronaut to start going "widdlywee..." as they stomp around Mars. [Eurekalert via IO9]
space
The Big Picture, my favorite new blog to come around in ages, has 17 of the most remarkable high res images from Mars you're likely to see. It includes everything from detailed photos of the surface to photos from above to animations of dust devils, and you've really got to see it. Above is a high-res pic of the Pheonix lander taken about a week ago, where you can clearly see its arm scooping up Martian dirt for analysis. Amazing. Be sure to follow the link to see the other 12 pictures.
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High-Res Mars Photographs are Absolutely Stunning
The Big Picture, my favorite new blog to come around in ages, has 17 of the most remarkable high res images from Mars you're likely to see. It includes everything from detailed photos of the surface to photos from above to animations of dust devils, and you've really got to see it. Above is a high-res pic of the Pheonix lander taken about a week ago, where you can clearly see its arm scooping up Martian dirt for analysis. Amazing. Be sure to follow the link to see the other 12 pictures.
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alien refreshments
The Mars Phoenix just issued a highly official twitter update saying that some white, shiny stuff it was staring at has sublimated. In other words, it's definitely ice. The previous discovery of probable ice sent thousands of scientists and NASA fans into violent discovery-gasms, but until the Phoenix team was to observe sublimation, which is when ice skips the liquid state and just evaporates, they couldn't be sure.
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Confirmed: Phoenix Finds Ice on Mars
The Mars Phoenix just issued a highly official twitter update saying that some white, shiny stuff it was staring at has sublimated. In other words, it's definitely ice. The previous discovery of probable ice sent thousands of scientists and NASA fans into violent discovery-gasms, but until the Phoenix team was to observe sublimation, which is when ice skips the liquid state and just evaporates, they couldn't be sure.
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Premature Excavation
First Time Jitters Cause Inaugural Mars Lander Load To Miss Target
Our favorite Martian gadget of the moment is experiencing some performance anxiety. While all of Phoenix's parts are working just fine, including the 8-foot scoop arm, the little guy just couldn't seal the deal when NASA scientists gave the green light to scoop dirt and put the bun in the oven. None of the inaugural sample made it into the first oven, you see, and scientists at the University of Arizona are scrambling today to find out why. More »
Suburban Sprawl
The puny Phoenix lander might be dominating the news right now, but in a few (dozen) years, we might be enjoying the Red Planet from a much more suburban perspective. A young designer has adapted one of man’s greatest achievements - the S.U.V. - to the Martian landscape. By scaling up the spidery walking legs of NASA’s ATHLETE rovers, the massive Moonstream would be able to slowly but smoothly traverse Mars’ uneven surfaces with a giant payload of people and hardware.
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Moonstream Rover Could Finally Make Yuppies Happy On Mars
The puny Phoenix lander might be dominating the news right now, but in a few (dozen) years, we might be enjoying the Red Planet from a much more suburban perspective. A young designer has adapted one of man’s greatest achievements - the S.U.V. - to the Martian landscape. By scaling up the spidery walking legs of NASA’s ATHLETE rovers, the massive Moonstream would be able to slowly but smoothly traverse Mars’ uneven surfaces with a giant payload of people and hardware.More »
scoop
After experiencing a little trouble early on with the robotic arm on the Phoenix lander, it appears that all systems are go for NASA to begin sampling Martian dirt. A practice scoop was carried out successfully and scientists noted that "a bright material appears in the scooped-up soil and in the hole from which it came"—which could mean the presence of ice or salt, according to experts. However, full-scale soil testing is not set to begin until later this week.
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Nasa's Phoenix Spacecraft Is Fully Scoopable
After experiencing a little trouble early on with the robotic arm on the Phoenix lander, it appears that all systems are go for NASA to begin sampling Martian dirt. A practice scoop was carried out successfully and scientists noted that "a bright material appears in the scooped-up soil and in the hole from which it came"—which could mean the presence of ice or salt, according to experts. However, full-scale soil testing is not set to begin until later this week.
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mars phoenix lander
NASA Phoenix Lander Finds Water On Mars!
The landing thrusters aboard the Phoenix Mars Lander apparently did their job and them some. First, they successfully fired and gently deposited the multimillion dollar probe on the surface of the Red Planet. And then, by doing just that, they blew away three to six inches of Martian soil to reveal the shiny, slick face of what could be a large ice patch. Brendan Fraser's frozen caveman body was noticeably absent from this block of ice, but NASA scientists were elated anyway. The discovery reaffirms that the landing was indeed a bull's eye, akin to the Opportunity rover "hole in one" crater touchdown more than four years ago.More »
nevermind
Putting rest to fears that the Phoenix Lander might be DOA, the lander wagged its robotic arm on Thursday. NASA was worried that a stuck piece of plastic casing could prohibit the 7.7 ft titanium appendage from extending, making it impossible for the Phoenix to carry out crucial drilling experiments.
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Mars Lander Can Move Arm Now, Probably Just Slept On It Wrong
Putting rest to fears that the Phoenix Lander might be DOA, the lander wagged its robotic arm on Thursday. NASA was worried that a stuck piece of plastic casing could prohibit the 7.7 ft titanium appendage from extending, making it impossible for the Phoenix to carry out crucial drilling experiments.
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ziggy stardust
Mars Phoenix: We Got Touchdown
This time there weren't any imperial vs metric units frack-ups: the Phoenix Mars Lander touched down perfectly on the northern polar region of Mars, starting a three-month mission that will see the spacecraft digging in the dirt for frozen water and tiny green men. More »
phoenix mars lander
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Today is Phoenix Mars Lander Day
As you digest hot dogs or tend to one of your geektastic Memorial Day grilling machines today, take a moment to consider NASA's Phoenix Lander, which is scheduled to touch down on Mars this evening. At about 8 p.m. EST, the multimillion dollar lander will enter the Red Planet's atmosphere and experience what CNN is calling "seven minutes of terror" (worry not, I checked the story and it has nothing to do with the Lander being in a closet with Paris Hilton). Then, during a maneuver that puts any earthbound supercar's brakes to shame, Phoenix will slow itself from approximately 13,000 miles per hour to about five in the space of six to seven minutes. Want to follow the probe's wild ride? There are a few sites covering the evening event live listed after the jump.More »
spirit rover
NASA Releases Dirty Photos of Spirit Rover Solar Panels
Hey Pig Pen. Yeah, you, the Mars Spirit Rover with the red Martian dust all over your solar panels. We're filing a post on a bathtub later today, so why don't you take the hint and use one? What's that? You're millions of miles away and potable water may or may not be somewhere on the planet you're currently exploring? Oh, well, in that case, pray for another wind storm or something, because these filthy before and after pics mean only about 1/3 of the Sun's light is getting through to power your electronics. NASA's plea for a sensor-cleaning interstellar dust storm is after the break. More »
ook ook
Forget about the Constellation missions to Mars, because the first Earthlings set to arrive to the Red Planet may be monkeys: macaques from the Sochi Institute of Medical Primatology, who may get back as fully grown primate overlords, or just prove that humans would be able to resist the 17-month trip in weightlessness and isolation, suffering a pureed food diet, like in 2001 in a spaceship not much bigger than Hasbro's 2.5-foot Millennium Falcon.
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Russian Monkeys May Get to Mars First
Forget about the Constellation missions to Mars, because the first Earthlings set to arrive to the Red Planet may be monkeys: macaques from the Sochi Institute of Medical Primatology, who may get back as fully grown primate overlords, or just prove that humans would be able to resist the 17-month trip in weightlessness and isolation, suffering a pureed food diet, like in 2001 in a spaceship not much bigger than Hasbro's 2.5-foot Millennium Falcon.
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alien robot love
Earth's First Close Encounter of the Alien Kind Will Be More Toaster Than Number Six
Forget little green men, Vulcans or super-sexy Number Six's slinking about the 'verse in little red cocktail dresses—some scientists say our first encounter with E.T. will likely involve a simple robot. For proof, says Seth Shostak, senior astronomer at the SETI Institute, you need only to look at our own species' advances in robotics. But then the 'scientists' in this MSNBC Battlestar Galactica puff piece get a little crazy. Human-cyborg relations? Marriage? That'll only work in Massachusetts! More »
space
Sad news today from NASA: Spirit, the Mars rover, is perfectly functional and waiting for instructions that it'll never receive on a sunny hillside on the red planet. It's being left to die due to budget cuts. UPDATE: Looks like NASA has changed their mind. Physorg reports that "it has rescinded a letter that recommended budget cuts in the Mars Rover program to cover the cost of a next-generation rover on the Red Planet." Yee haw!
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NASA Leaving Spirit Mars Rover to Die Due to Budget Cuts
Sad news today from NASA: Spirit, the Mars rover, is perfectly functional and waiting for instructions that it'll never receive on a sunny hillside on the red planet. It's being left to die due to budget cuts. UPDATE: Looks like NASA has changed their mind. Physorg reports that "it has rescinded a letter that recommended budget cuts in the Mars Rover program to cover the cost of a next-generation rover on the Red Planet." Yee haw!More »
to infinity and beyond
Orion Crew Test Module Timelapse Build
This timelapse video shows the construction of the first Orion crew module, the spacecraft that will take humanity to the moon and Mars. As you can see, this version is not the full ship, as it lacks all computer, engine and support systems, not to talk about the proton torpedoes and turbolasers. However, the Apollo-style module is the first real tangible part of the Constellation Program, and will play a crucial part in its early development.More »
7:00 PM on Thu Mar 13 2008
By jesusdiaz
10,374 views,
24 comments
Latest by n/a: like previous posters said, this looks exactly like apollo. but yes, apollo did work, extremley well actually. why are we wasting all this taxpayer $$ on an entire new design? Why don't we just use the same more »
space
Would you go on a mission to Mars? What about if it was a one-way mission? And you were by yourself? Yeah, that changes things a bit. Well, that's exactly what former NASA engineer Jim McClane suggests, saying that it's worth considering and removes many of the hurdles keeping us from the Red Planet now.
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A One-Way, One-Person Mission to Mars: Who Wants In?
Would you go on a mission to Mars? What about if it was a one-way mission? And you were by yourself? Yeah, that changes things a bit. Well, that's exactly what former NASA engineer Jim McClane suggests, saying that it's worth considering and removes many of the hurdles keeping us from the Red Planet now.
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space
This amazing photo was captured late last month by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as it flew over the north pole of the red planet. It shows fine-grains and chunks of ice falling down the side of a 2,300-foot-high cliff and then creating a huge dust cloud on the gentle slopes below. Click through for more detailed photos and shots of the orbiting robot that took them.
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Reconnaissance Orbiter Captures Live North Pole Avalanche on Mars
This amazing photo was captured late last month by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as it flew over the north pole of the red planet. It shows fine-grains and chunks of ice falling down the side of a 2,300-foot-high cliff and then creating a huge dust cloud on the gentle slopes below. Click through for more detailed photos and shots of the orbiting robot that took them.
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