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Mars Exploration

Both Europe and America are stepping up their exploration of Mars. The hunt for water and signs of life on the Red Planet continues.

Posted by Tormod
19 March, 2008 05:06:00

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Named after the Roman god of war, Mars has intrigued people since ancient times. Mars has been an inspiration for both science fiction writers and scientists, and even after several visits to the planet, it still holds mysteries which demand answers.

Has there ever been life on Mars? Current knowledge is not enough. The finding of the ALH84001 meteorite in Antarctica in 1984 seemed to have signs of fossils, but the meteorite brought more questions than answers.

Mars Global Surveyor (now known as Mars Odyssey) has mapped the planet in detail, and continue to provide us with incredible pictures of the surface of Mars. The Mars Pathfinder mission in 1996 saw the entire population of Earth fall in love with a small, rover-like vehicle which (after having travelled half a billion kilometers) crashed in a rock. Nevertheless, these missions have been astounding successes.

In 2003, Europe sent Mars Express with the Beagle 2 Lander, which was supposed to be an orbiter/lander duo. Sadly the lander was lost on impact, but the orbiter is still working fine and has sent incredible pictures from Mars.

At the same time, NASA's two Mars Exploration Rovers, pace the surface at up to 100 meters per day, also looking for water and signs of past or present life. They were expected to last for 90 days...but in September 2007, NASA decided to let the program run for another few years. These machines are incredible!

Recently the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter arrived at Mars as well, with the best camera ever mounted on an interplanetary space probe. Ithas sent back stunning pictures of the Red Planet. MRO has thebestcamera that has ever been sent into space onboard a probe.

Manned exploration
In the next few decades we might even see human beings travel to Mars. NASA has pledged to return to the moon by 2018, and then move on to Mars as soon as they have the technology. The European Space Agency has also began making plans for Mars exploration with their Aurora program. However, the first human mission to Mars probably will not happen before 2030.

Related Links

Exploring Mars
http://www.planetary.org/mars/
A site from the Planetary Society about ongoing and upcoming missions to Mars.

A Crewed Mission to Mars...
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/mars/mars_crew.html
A NASA page which discusses the possibilities for a manned mission to Mars.

The Mars Exploration Rover Mission
http://www.planetary.org/rrgtm/mer.html
This page has all the details about the Mars Exploration Rover 1 and 2 which will explore the Martian surface.

Mars Express Website
http://www.esa.int/export/SPECIALS/Mars_Express/index.html
This is the official ESA (European Space Agency) website for Mars Express, which will search for water and life on the Red Planet.

Planetary Surface Robot Work Crews (RWC)
http://prl.jpl.nasa.gov/projects/rwc/technology/rwc_tech.html
This page presents a group of robots which are designed to perform work as a group, mainly on the Martian surface.

MOC Images Suggest Early Mars History is Recorded in Sedimentary Rocks
http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/dec00_seds/
This page has some magnificent pictures which NASA scientists claim are proof of ancient lakes on Mars.

Earth Invades Mars
http://www.spacer.com/mars/mars.html
Lots of information about current Mars exploration issues.

The Center for Mars Exploration
http://cmex-www.arc.nasa.gov/
NASA's Mars News and Information website.

Mars Exploration Program
http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/
A NASA site with information on Pathfinder, Surveyor 2001 and more.

The Mars Society
http://www.marssociety.org/
A website about the exploration of Mars.

Chronology of Mars Exploration
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/chronology_mars.html
This is a timeline showing the history of Mars exploration.

Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera Image Gallery
http://www.msss.com/moc_gallery/
Malin Space Science Systems

News from the Rover Missions
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/solarsystem/mer_main.html
NASA's page with updated news from the Mars Exploration Rovers, including articles about the important find of water.