NASA’s MAVEN on way to Mars
NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) space probe thundered to space on Nov. 18 following a flawless blastoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 41 at 1:28 p.m. EST atop a powerful Atlas V 401 rocket. “Hey Guys we’re going to Mars!” gushed Bruce Jakosky, MAVEN’s Principal Investigator at a post …
India’s first Mars probe joins MAVEN in race to Red Planet
Indian space engineers initiated the 440 Newton liquid fueled engine firing precisely as planned during a critical nail-biting burn lasting some 22 minutes. The Trans Mars Insertion (TMI) firing propelled India’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) away from Earth forever and placed the spacecraft on course for a rendezvous with the Red Planet on September 24, …
Robotic armada is invading Mars from all directions
Mars Global Surveyor acquired this global map of Mars in September of 2000. Credit: NASA/JPL/MSSS The Red Planet is getting a whole lot of attention from Earthlings right now, and it’s like never before in the history of humanity and space exploration. Currently, an armada of five spacecraft from Earth are actively exploring the vicinity …
India launching MOM to study Mars
India is gearing up for its first ever space undertaking to the Red Planet – the Mars Orbiter Mission, or MOM – which is the brainchild of the Indian Space Research Organization, or ISRO. Among other objectives, MOM will conduct a search for potential signatures of Martian methane – which could stem from either living …
NASA’s MAVEN orbiter set to launch on quest to study Mars atmosphere
MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN Mission) is NASA’s next mission to Mars. After a decade of hard work by dedicated science and engineering teams, it is scheduled to lift off on Nov. 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral, Florida on an Atlas V 401 rocket. The 903 kilogram (2000 pound) probe will arrive at the …
Antares delivers Cygnus to ISS
The new ‘Commercial Space Era’ received a resounding boost today when a privately developed Antares rocket lofting the first ever Cygnus commercial cargo resupply craft thundered to space from America’s newest launch pad at NASA Wallops along the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The history making launch marks the first time that a spacecraft launched from …
Curiosity discovers a habitable environment for life on Mars
As NASA’s Curiosity rover begins her eighth month exploring the Red Planet since the nail-biting touchdown inside Gale Crater on Aug. 5, 2012, she has made the most amazing finding thus far. After analyzing the first powder ever drilled from the interior of a Martian rock, Curiosity discovered key chemical ingredients necessary for life to have thrived on early Mars billions of years ago.
The little rover that could: Opportunity still making discoveries
Today, Opportunity celebrates a truly unfathomable achievement, entering Year 10 on Mars since she rolled to a bumpy stop on January 24, 2004. Now she’s at a super sweet spot for science loaded with clays and veined minerals and making the most remarkable findings yet about the planets watery past – building upon a long string of unthinkable discoveries due to her totally unforeseen longevity.
Antares blast off set for mid April
NASA announced that the maiden flight of the private Antares rocket from Orbital Sciences Corp. is slated to soar to space between April 17 to 19 from the newly constructed seaside launch pad dubbed 0-A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The two stage Antares rocket serves as the …
Orion advancing toward 2014 test flight
NASA is making steady progress toward liftoff of the inaugural space-bound Orion crew capsule. The agency aims for a Florida blastoff of the uncrewed Exploration Flight Test-1 mission (EFT-1) – about 18 months from now – in September 2014 atop a Delta 4 Heavy Booster, NASA officials informed me. Orion will ultimately fly astronauts to …