ExoMars

Here Are Our First Exciting Glimpses of Mars From Europe’s New Orbiter

In case Schiaparelli’s crash-landing left you thinking the European Space Agency’s ExoMars mission was a bust, rest assured it wasn’t. The mission’s scientific workhorse—its Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO)—is performing beautifully, as evidenced by the first images and splashes of data ESA has now received back from the Red Planet. In keeping with ExoMars’ goal of…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Nov 29

This Is Our Best Image Yet of ESA’s Crashed Mars Lander

NASA’s Mars Reconaissance Orbiter (MRO) has acquired new high-resolution images of the crashed Schiaparelli lander, following its ill-fated attempt to reach the surface of Mars in one piece. The images confirm that the lander had a very hard fall, and raise new questions about the exact nature of the crash. Ever since the European Space…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Oct 27

Software Error Implicated in Crash of Mars Lander

Researchers with the ExoMars mission are pointing to a potential computing glitch as the cause of last week’s crash of the Schiaparelli lander. The challenge now will be to isolate and correct the error in hopes of preventing a repeat in 2020, when mission planners aim to land a much larger rover on the Red…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky Oct 25

It Looks Like NASA Found ESA’s Crashed Mars Lander

On Wednesday, the European Space Agency attempted to land a probe on Mars, and things went bad. While the ExoMars mission team continues to piece together why its Schiaparelli lander lost contact with the Earth, NASA has now obtained photographic evidence of what appears to be a crash-landing. A new image of Schiaparelli’s intended landing…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Oct 21

Yesterday’s ExoMars Landing Did Not Go as Planned

The European Space Agency’s Schiaparelli lander did not touch down on Mars as planned yesterday. During a press briefing this morning, ExoMars mission scientists confirmed that the lander’s signal cut out about 50 seconds before landing, and that something went wrong in the final steps, right around when the parachute was jettisoned. ESA is still…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Oct 20

Watch Two Space Agencies Attempt a Daredevil Landing on Mars This Morning [Updated]

After a seven month journey, the ExoMars mission arrives in orbit around Mars today. Its first order of business? To attempt a historic, daredevil landing on the Red Planet. A collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and Roscosmos, ExoMars seeks to continue the search for biological and geologic activity on Mars, a planet often…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Oct 19

Two Space Agencies Will Try to Make a Historic Landing on Mars Next Week

A joint mission led by the European Space Agency and Roscosmos arrives at Mars next week, and its first order of business will be to make history. If all goes well, NASA is about to lose its bragging rights as the only space agency to successfully land probes on the Red Planet. ExoMars, an astrobiology…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Oct 10

This Is the First Image From the ExoMars Mission

Last month, the European Space Agency and Roscosmos lofted their ExoMars mission into space. Now, it’s sent back the first image from its journey to the Red Planet. This grainy image was captured by the Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) aboard the mission’s Trace Gas Orbiter. It might not look much, but it…

Space & Spaceflight Jamie Condliffe Apr 14

Relive the Magic of the Latest Rocket Launch to Mars in Three Glorious Minutes

Two weeks ago, the European Space Agency launched ExoMars, a major new mission that’ll hunt for signs of alien life on the Red Planet. Now, the ESA has kindly cut us a sick highlight reel set to some orchestral dubstep so that we can all spend our Friday reliving the magic of six metric tons…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Apr 1

Asteroid Hunters Around the World Just Spotted Something Incredible

If an asteroid were closing in on our planet, we’d know about it quickly thanks to a dedicated network of astronomers. But this week, the Near Earth Object Coordination Center (NEOCC) had its eyes fixed on something else: two Mars-bound spacecraft attempting to escape Earth’s gravity well. And they did a bang-up job capturing the…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Mar 18

The ExoMars Launch Was a Resounding Success

After more than twelve hours of nail-biting anticipation, the European Space Agency’s ExoMars probe has finally phoned home, confirming that this morning’s launch was a complete success. The mission is now safely on its way to Mars. ExoMars is an ambitious new endeavor to hunt for signs of alien life on the Red Planet, managed…

Tech News Maddie Stone Mar 14

Watch a Groundbreaking New Science Mission Blast Off For Mars

Sleep? Who needs that when you can watch one of the coolest Martian science missions of the decade blast off for the Red Planet? That’s happening very early tomorrow morning—and if you’re up at odd hours, you won’t want to miss it. https://gizmodo.com/a-major-european-mission-to-mars-will-hunt-for-signs-of-1763874937 After years of preparation, the European Space Agency and Roscosmos are finally…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Mar 14

Why Europe’s New Mission to Mars Is Such a Big Deal

NASA gets all the glory when it comes to Martian exploration, but two other space agencies are now hoping to change that. Early next week, the European Space Agency and Roscosmos are launching the first phase of their joint ExoMars mission, a major new scientific effort with an badass goal: discovering signs of life on…

Space & Spaceflight Maddie Stone Mar 11

We Think These Martian Roadmaps Accidentally Revealed the Site of an Upcoming Mars Landing

In 2018, a Martian rover will land on that planet’s surface to dig in the dirt for signs of past life—and some newly commissioned Martian roadmaps may have accidentally revealed more than intended about just where that site will be. These maps from the UK’s Ordnance Survey of the Martian plains were designed to take…

Space & Spaceflight Ria Misra Feb 15

This Rover Isn’t on Mars

This looks like it could the latest rover to land on the surface of Mars. But in fact it’s a test of the European Space Agency’s ExoMars mission happening right here on Earth. Theaerial photograph shows a half-scale model of the ExoMars lander and a prototype rover being tested in the ESA’s Mars Yard in…

Space & Spaceflight Jamie Condliffe Nov 2

NASA’s 2020 Plan for Mars Makes the Old New Again

The Curiosity rover is just four months into its primary two-year mission on Mars, and already NASA is planning sequels. The Agency announced yesterday plans for a series of Martian missions that will culminate in 2020 with the launch of a new robotic science rover based largely on Curiosity’s design. If its mission outline unfolds…

io9 Amy Shira Teitel - Vintage Space Dec 5

How will the White House’s brutal budget cuts affect NASA?

The White House has called for draconian cuts to NASA’s budget, forcing the Agency to shelve undertakings that run the gamut from ambitious planetary missions to educational outreach. Astronomer Phil Plait — master of ceremonies over at Bad Astronomy — does an excellent job summing up the scope of NASA’s budget cuts, and how they…

io9 Phil Plait -- Bad Astronomy Feb 15

NASA is too poor to help Europe go to Mars

This is devastating news. The BBC is reporting that ExoMars — a joint program between NASA and the European Space Agency with Martian missions scheduled for 2016 and 2018 — is on the ropes, owing to America’s budgetary woes. Is this the first scientific casualty of the 2013 budget cuts? For those of you unfamiliar…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Feb 6

Here Are Our First Exciting Glimpses of Mars From Europe’s New Orbiter

This Is Our Best Image Yet of ESA’s Crashed Mars Lander

Software Error Implicated in Crash of Mars Lander

It Looks Like NASA Found ESA’s Crashed Mars Lander

Yesterday’s ExoMars Landing Did Not Go as Planned

Watch Two Space Agencies Attempt a Daredevil Landing on Mars This Morning [Updated]

Two Space Agencies Will Try to Make a Historic Landing on Mars Next Week

This Is the First Image From the ExoMars Mission

Relive the Magic of the Latest Rocket Launch to Mars in Three Glorious Minutes

Asteroid Hunters Around the World Just Spotted Something Incredible

The ExoMars Launch Was a Resounding Success

Watch a Groundbreaking New Science Mission Blast Off For Mars

Why Europe’s New Mission to Mars Is Such a Big Deal

We Think These Martian Roadmaps Accidentally Revealed the Site of an Upcoming Mars Landing

This Rover Isn’t on Mars

NASA’s 2020 Plan for Mars Makes the Old New Again

How will the White House’s brutal budget cuts affect NASA?

NASA is too poor to help Europe go to Mars

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