Science & Exploration 08/10/2025 1611 views 15 likes In brief Combing through 20 years of images from the European Space Agency’s Mars Express and ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter spacecraft, scientists have tracked 1039 tornado-like whirlwinds to reveal how dust is lifted into the air and swept around Mars’s surface. Published today in Science Advances, their findings – including that the …
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The right mix of astronaut personalities could make or break future missions to Mars. A new study from researchers at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey used advanced computer simulations to test how mixtures of different dominant personality traits within crews affect stress, health and teamwork during long-term space missions. The results, published Oct. 8 in the journal …
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Blue Origin’s second New Glenn rocket just made a big move. Jeff Bezos’ company rolled a New Glenn first stage out to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Wednesday (Oct. 8) to help prep the vehicle for its upcoming liftoff. That launch, which is expected to take place late this month or in November, …
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Twenty years’ worth of imagery captured by two orbiters circling Mars has revealed raging winds on the red planet. Wind on the barren planet would be invisible if it weren’t for Mars’ iconic red dust, which was caught in the wind’s vortices, creating a phenomenon known as dust devils. These tornado-like whirlwinds also occur on Earth, but the new catalog …
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A rare interstellar comet — only the third ever confirmed to enter our solar system — was photographed last week, closely approaching Mars, the European Space Agency said Tuesday. The images taken on Friday by two Mars orbiters show a bright, fuzzy white dot of the comet, also known as 3I/ATLAS, appearing to move against a backdrop of distant stars …
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A European Mars probe witnessed the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS’ Red Planet flyby last week. On Oct. 3, 3I/ATLAS zoomed within 19 million miles (30 million kilometers) of Mars. The European Space Agency‘s (ESA) ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) was ready for the closeup, snapping imagery of the interloper using its Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS). “This was a …
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Two spacecraft on Mars have captured new images of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS in the closest view that the European Space Agency (ESA) will get of the mysterious object, according to an ESA statement. The comet, which came from an unknown star system far beyond our own, is currently taking a months-long tour of the inner solar system. It made …
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Fly over Xanthe Terra with Mars Express – YouTube Watch On If you’ve ever wanted to get lost on Mars, now’s your chance: You can fly over a maze-like canyon on the Red Planet in a stunning new video from the European Space Agency (ESA). The animation, based on data from ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft, brings viewers on a “mesmerising …
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As predicted, interstellar object 3I/ATLAS came within spitting distance of the surface of Mars as it continued blazing its path through the solar system. The mysterious object, widely believed to be a comet, is only the third object from beyond the solar system to have ever been identified as it cruises through. It’s fascinated scientists ever since it was first …
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NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover caught something unusual streaking across the sky above the Red Planet. On Saturday (Oct. 4), Perseverance’s Right Navigation Camera (Navcam) captured an image of a streak of light in the sky above Mars. The date of the image coincides with when interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was set to make its closest pass to the Red Planet, according …
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