by Michael Schirberfor Astrobiology Magazine - Moffett Field CA (SPX) Jun 06, 2008 Current and upcoming missions to Mars hope to find some sign of past or present life in martian soil. But a constant worry is that biological contamination on the spacecraft will lead to a false detection.
Tempe AZ (SPX) May 23, 2008 - Deposits of nearly pure silica discovered by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit in Gusev Crater formed when volcanic steam or hot water (or maybe both) percolated through the ground. Such deposits are found around hydrothermal vents like those in Yellowstone National Park.
Tempe AZ (SPX) May 23, 2008 - On Sunday, May 25, 2008, the Phoenix spacecraft (a joint project between NASA and the University of Arizona) will arrive at Mars after a 10-month cruise from Earth. Traveling initially at 12,500 miles per hour (5.7 kilometers per second), Phoenix will make a hair-raising, nail-biting, 6-and-a-half-minute plunge though the Martian atmosphere to a smooth landing on icy dirt not far from the edge of the Red Planet's northern polar cap.
Paris, France (ESA) May 23, 2008 - Beginning late on 25 May, Mars Express will execute a series of pre-programmed commands specially designed to support NASA's Phoenix lander. The ESA spacecraft will conduct a high-speed slew, enabling it to track Phoenix as it enters the martian atmosphere.
Orlando FL (SPX) May 23, 2008 - When NASA's Phoenix lander touches down on Mars Sunday, it will be carrying two special tools to give scientists their best look at the Red Planet's true colors.
Pasadena CA (SPX) May 23, 2008 - With three days and 3 million miles left to fly before arriving at Mars, NASA's Phoenix spacecraft is on track for its destination in the Martian arctic.
Sacramento CA (SPX) May 22, 2008 - Aerojet, Lockheed Martin and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) are counting on 12 Aerojet lander engines to smoothly land NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander onto the surface of Mars on May 25, 2008.
Paris, France (ESA) May 21, 2008 - ESA's Mars Express mission control team are ready to monitor Phoenix's critical entry, descent and landing onto the Martian surface on 26 May 2008. The Mars Express mission control team have completed major preparations for supporting the entry, descent and landing (EDL) phase of NASA's Phoenix mission to the Red Planet.
Pasadena CA (JPL) May 20, 2008 - Welcome to the kick-off entry for the Phoenix entry, descent and landing (EDL) blog from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. I'm Brent Shockley, the Information and Configuration Management Engineer for Phoenix at JPL.
Moffet Field CA (SPX) May 20, 2008 - NASA's Phoenix lander is less than a week from touch down in the frozen northern wastes of Mars, where it will search for signs that, in the planet's recent past, the region may have been habitable.
London, UK (SPX) May 19, 2008 - NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is due to land on Mars this month (May) where it will probe the arctic landscape searching for conditions favourable for past or present life.
Pasadena CA (JPL) May 16, 2008 - New observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter indicate that the crust and upper mantle of Mars are stiffer and colder than previously thought.
Paris, France (ESA) May 15, 2008 - Even in the clearest, bluest sky on Earth, there is still water vapour in our atmosphere. If you could condense all the water vapour out of the atmosphere above you, it would form a layer of water two centimetres deep. On Mars today, there is also water vapour in the atmosphere but it would create a layer just 10 micrometres thick.
Silver Spring MD (SPX) May 15, 2008 - Science Channel will broadcast live coverage of mankind's next major step in Mars exploration with MARS LIVE: THE PHOENIX LANDS premiering Sunday, May 25, 2008, from 7-9 PM (ET) and 4-6 PM (PT). Originating LIVE from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. and the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, the program will give viewers a first look at photos sent back from the Mars surface.
Washington DC (SPX) May 15, 2008 - NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing to end its long journey and begin a three-month mission to taste and sniff fistfuls of Martian soil and buried ice. The lander is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet May 25.
Pasadena CA (JPL) May 14, 2008 - NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing to end its long journey and begin a three-month mission to taste and sniff fistfuls of Martian soil and buried ice. The lander is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet May 25.
