Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter News & Features
NASA Scientists Re-Create Mars ‘Spiders’ in a Lab for First Time
Tests on Earth appear to confirm how the Red Planet’s spider-shaped geologic formations are carved by carbon dioxide. Since discovering them in 2003 via images from orbiters, scientists have marveled at spider-like shapes sprawled across the southern hemisphere of Mars.…
UPDATED: 10 Things for Mars 10
Scientists from around the world are gathering this week in California to take stock of the state of science from Mars and discuss goals for the next steps in exploration of the Red Planet. In the spirit of Mars 10,…
Major Martian Milestones
There’s good news from NASA’s Cloudspotting on Mars project! That’s the project that invites you to help identify exotic clouds high in the Martian atmosphere. Congratulations to the Cloudspotting on Mars team and all the volunteers who have helped spot Martian clouds!
NASA Retires Mineral Mapping Instrument on Mars Orbiter
One of six instruments aboard the agency’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, CRISM produced global maps of minerals on the Red Planet’s surface.
New Interactive Mosaic Uses NASA Imagery to Show Mars in Vivid Detail
Both scientists and the public can navigate a new global image of the Red Planet that was made at Caltech using data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
NASA Explores a Winter Wonderland on Mars
Cube-shaped snow, icy landscapes, and frost are all part of the Red Planet’s coldest season. When winter comes to Mars, the surface is transformed into a truly otherworldly holiday scene. Snow, ice, and frost accompany the season’s sub-zero temperatures. Some…
Help NASA Scientists Find Clouds on Mars
By identifying clouds in data collected by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, the public can increase scientists’ understanding of the Red Planet’s atmosphere. NASA scientists hope to solve a fundamental mystery about Mars’ atmosphere, and you can help. They’ve organized a…
NASA Mars Orbiter Releasing One of Its Last Rainbow-Colored Maps
The map, to be released in batches over six months, covers the vast majority of the planet, revealing dozens of minerals found on its surface. Scientists are about to get a new look at Mars, thanks to a multicolored 5.6-gigapixel…
Update: NASA Extends Exploration for 8 Planetary Science Missions
Editor’s Note: On May 26, 2022 NASA’s New Horizons mission’s second extended mission proposal was approved for implementation. In the two-year extended mission, New Horizons will conduct multi-disciplinary observations contributing to important science for NASA’s Planetary Science, Heliophysics and Astrophysics…
NASA’s MRO Finds Water Flowed on Mars Longer Than Previously Thought
Caltech researchers used the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to determine that surface water left salt minerals behind as recently as 2 billion years ago. Mars once rippled with rivers and ponds billions of years ago, providing a potential habitat for microbial…