Tag Archives: Mars

Earth, Mars, Venus — and a long-lost planet — may have once ‘waltzed’ in perfect harmony around the sun

Earth, Mars, Venus — and a long-lost planet — may have once ‘waltzed’ in perfect harmony around the sun

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. New research suggests that most of the solar system’s inner rocky planets once orbited the sun in perfect harmony. | Credit: SCIEPRO/Getty Images Four of the solar system‘s terrestrial planets, including Earth and a long-lost world, likely started life waltzing around the sun …

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Flawed Tests on Earth May Explain Why NASA’s Rovers Get Stuck on Mars

Flawed Tests on Earth May Explain Why NASA’s Rovers Get Stuck on Mars

In the spring of 2019, the six-wheeled Spirit rover was driving backwards to drag an inoperable front right wheel when it got stuck on the sandy Martian surface. Despite spending months trying to excavate its robot, NASA could not free Spirit. Now, engineers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison may have figured out a way to better prepare NASA’s robots for …

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Earth, Mars, Venus — and a long-lost planet — may have once ‘waltzed’ in perfect harmony around the sun

Earth, Mars, Venus — and a long-lost planet — may have once ‘waltzed’ in perfect harmony around the sun

Four of the solar system‘s terrestrial planets, including Earth and a long-lost world, likely started life waltzing around the sun to a fixed rhythm, according to a new study. The findings also suggest that those planets formed earlier than previously thought. Astronomers have been increasingly interested in how planetary systems change their internal architecture on cosmic timescales, motivated by several …

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NASA’s Europa Clipper Radar Instrument Proves Itself at Mars

NASA’s Europa Clipper Radar Instrument Proves Itself at Mars

The agency’s largest interplanetary probe tested its radar during a Mars flyby. The results include a detailed image and bode well for the mission at Jupiter’s moon Europa. As it soared past Mars in March, NASA’s Europa Clipper conducted a critical radar test that had been impossible to accomplish on Earth. Now that mission scientists have studied the full stream …

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“They Locked Them Up to Simulate Mars” but NASA Volunteers Spent a Year Playing PS4 and Sparked Outrage Over Millions in Taxpayer Funding

“They Locked Them Up to Simulate Mars” but NASA Volunteers Spent a Year Playing PS4 and Sparked Outrage Over Millions in Taxpayer Funding

IN A NUTSHELL 🚀 For over a year, four volunteers lived in a NASA simulation to test life on Mars, balancing scientific rigor with leisure activities. 🏠 The crew was confined in a 3D-printed habitat at the Johnson Space Center, simulating Martian conditions with limited resources and delayed communication. 🧠 A focus of the mission was on managing stress and …

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The Last “Heartbreaking” Message Sent From NASA’s Opportunity Mars Rover—Lost in a Deadly Planetary Storm

The Last “Heartbreaking” Message Sent From NASA’s Opportunity Mars Rover—Lost in a Deadly Planetary Storm

When NASA launched Opportunity and its twin Spirit in 2003, the mission team was aiming for a three-month journey on Mars. According to NASA’s own historical records, each rover was built to function for just 90 sols (about 92 Earth days). Opportunity landed in Meridiani Planum, a site scientists picked because it showed signs of a watery past—minerals called hematite, …

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“NASA Calls It the ‘Skyfall Maneuver’” as Plan to Drop 6 Mars Helicopters Mid-Air Divides Experts and Fuels Outrage Over Billion-Dollar Space Risks

“NASA Calls It the ‘Skyfall Maneuver’” as Plan to Drop 6 Mars Helicopters Mid-Air Divides Experts and Fuels Outrage Over Billion-Dollar Space Risks

IN A NUTSHELL 🚀 Skyfall is an innovative mission by NASA and AeroVironment, Inc. to deploy six autonomous helicopters on Mars. 🛩️ Building on Ingenuity’s success, the mission aims to enhance Martian exploration with faster and cost-effective methods. 📡 The helicopters will act as aerial scouts, providing high-resolution images and data to prepare for future human landings. 🔍 Skyfall could …

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