Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Stories
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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…
NASA’s Mars Fleet Lies Low With Sun Between Earth and Red Planet
The missions will continue collecting data about the Red Planet, though engineers back on Earth will stop sending commands to them until mid-October. NASA will stand down from commanding its Mars missions for the next few weeks while Earth and…
NASA Confirms Thousands of Massive, Ancient Volcanic Eruptions on Mars
Scientists found evidence that a region of northern Mars called Arabia Terra experienced thousands of “super eruptions,” the biggest volcanic eruptions known, over a 500-million-year period. Some volcanoes can produce eruptions so powerful they release oceans of dust and toxic…
Clays, Not Water, Are Likely Source of Mars ‘Lakes’
Three studies published in the past month have cast doubt on the premise of subsurface lakes below the Martian south pole. Where there’s water, there’s life. That’s the case on Earth, at least, and also why scientists remain tantalized by…