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Mars

"The red planet"

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Mars, named after the Roman God of war, is the second-smallest planet in our solar system. Often referred to as “the red planet” due to its red appearance caused by the iron oxide on its surface. Features of the planet include impact craters, valleys, deserts, and large polar ice caps.

The planet has been explored by many unmanned spacecraft, including Mariner 4, Mars Pathfinder, Mars Express, and many more.

Traditional life here has been deemed as likely, even more so under the surface due to underground water.

Important Stats

  • 4th planet from the Sun (142 million miles)
  • 2 moons
  • 4,220 miles in diameter
  • 25 degree axis tilt
  • 687 day long years
  • 30% of Earth’s gravity (3.71 m/s²)
  • Average temperature of -81 degrees F
  • Atmospheric makeup of mostly carbon dioxide with little water vapor

Moons

  • Phobos (fear)
  • Deimos (panic)

Surface Photos

Earth isn’t the only planet to have had seasons study shows

My favorite part of where I live now is four distinct seasons each year. Wisconsin brings cold winters, hot summers, beautiful falls, and well, rainy springs. In contrast, during my time in Florida, we experienced two seasons: intensely hot and wet, followed by relatively less hot and dry (if you’re curious, the latter is when you most likely came for vacation). Interestingly, seasons appear to have lost their uniqueness in space, as a study indicates that Mars once possessed them before its water reserves evaporated.

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NASA’s InSight falls silent, its mission complete

On December 21, NASA reported that the Mars lander InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) missed replying to its second call from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, likely as a result of the power waning.  This led to NASA officially concluding its four-year mission on Mars. There are several elements that led to the lander’s loss of power, leading many to question how the vehicle could have been saved. Followers of the mission have common questions about how the vehicle could’ve been saved. They also ask about the fate of Mars’ other remaining operational vehicles.

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NASA discovers largest fresh meteoroid impact on Mars in 16 years

Last year, on December 24, NASA’s InSight lander detected a magnitude 4 marsquake, which initially didn’t appear to be anything out of the ordinary. Only later did NASA learn that this particular marsquake was quite remarkable, caused by one of the largest meteoroid strikes that NASA has ever seen on Mars.

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The curious case of Curiosity’s cracked wheels

curiosity rover wheel holes

For any given Mars rover, there are three major and newsworthy events in its life: launch, landing, and discovery. Aside from those times, hardly anyone is paying attention to the myriad of images being sent back on a non-stop basis. Only the most hardcore Mars nerds or those who operate the rovers will see them. Or, anyone who follows a Twitter bot that automatically tweets the pictures. It’s thanks to this bot that word is getting out about Curiosity’s cracked wheels.

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space explored podcast

Space Explored Podcast 48: Space Coast weather is getting rough, more

This week Seth and Jared dive into the weather that has been and will affect Space Coast launches, especially now that we get into the thick of hurricane season. Starship is back in the news with a record-breaking static fire and organic material found on Mars?

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Mars presence looms closer as NASA, SpaceX, and Relativity race toward new technologies

spacex mars base

The race to developing a presence on Mars is long, but several players are already competing. From those who wish to explore and colonize the planet, Mars is a major focus more than ever right now. There are a few races happening to reach Mars with new technologies happening simultaneously. Which will be first is the question…

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A fleet of Ingenuity-like helicopters could come to Mars for sample return mission

It’s that time of year again (I feel like it is always that time of year) when drafts of NASA’s next fiscal year budget start to form. During this process, we gain insight into how Congress wants that money spent, which could include changes to existing programs. For example, this year, it looks like Congress was so impressed with Ingenuity’s success that it wants more helicopters (air spacecraft?) for NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission.

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