Mars Travel

Inverted Features on Mars

2016-08-09T06:44:00.000-04:00

Imagine a river or lake on Earth. What would it look like if you took all the water out? Something like this:

Dry Riverbed in the Himalayas

On Earth, when a riverbed dries out it leaves a depression, or indentation in the Earth.

So then why on Mars are riverbeds and lakes inverted, or raised features, like in the below image of Gorgonum Basin?

Gorgonum Basin. Credit: HiRISE (Click through for HiRISE captioned image)

or Iani Chaos?

Iani Chaos. Credit: THEMIS (Click through to post on this image)

It all comes down to erosion. The weight of the water condenses and compacts the sediment beneath it, making it much harder and more resistant to wear from erosion. Thus, over the course of millions (and sometimes billions) of years, the ground surrounding the river bed gets eroded much more rapidly than the riverbed itself. This results in the inverted features that you see on Mars today.

New Theory Explains Phobos and Deimos

2016-07-04T17:35:00.000-04:00

In a new article published in the journal Nature, researchers from Belgium, France and Japan offer a new theory on how Phobos and Deimos came to be. They suggest that there was a a giant impact with Mars that created a debris ring around the planet. This inner part of the debris ring would have hosted the preponderance of material and included at least one moon with a diameter of around 200km. Meanwhile the outer ring held less debris, which through the gravitational influence of the large moon could have eventually clumped together to form Phobos and Deimos.

New theory suggests that a proto-planet one-third the size of Mars crashed into Mars, creating a debris field around the planet that included a 200km moon in its inner ring. The gravitational pull of that moon helped the formation of Phobos and Deimos in the outer ring of debris. That larger moon eventually crashed back into Mars. Photograph: A. Trinh/Royal Observatory of Belgium

So then what became of the large, 200km moon? This new theory suggests that it crashed back into Mars, splitting into hundreds of small parts that then disintegrated as they fell through the atmosphere, with some of the larger pieces leaving small impact craters on the surface.

Alas, in 20-40 million more years the same fate will befall Phobos.

Sources: Nature, The Guardian

Informative ISS Flier

2015-06-21T07:26:00.002-04:00

Right now there are 6 people currently in space aboard the ISS, travelling at 5 miles per second (just over 8 km per second). They orbit the Earth once every 90 minutes. Remarkable huh? (Click to enlarge)

Please spread this and other space material far and wide so we can help raise public awareness and excitement for space exploration and discovery. A good starting point would be to use this image as a flier and post it within your local community, or on your social media. The more space advocates we create, the louder our voice will be!

View All Space Fliers

SpaceX Mars Travel Poster - Phobos and Deimos

2015-05-24T23:36:00.001-04:00

SpaceX has come out with some vintage style Mars Travel posters. This one shows a couple enjoying a 'cruise' on Mars' Moons Phobos or Deimos.

SpaceX Mars Travel Poster - Olympus Mons

2015-05-24T23:28:00.002-04:00

SpaceX has come out with some vintage style Mars Travel posters. This one is for Olympus Mons, the highest peak in the Solar System.

SpaceX Mars Travel Poster - Valles Marineris

2015-05-24T23:22:00.000-04:00

SpaceX has come out with some vintage style Mars Travel posters. This one is for Valles Marineris, known as the Grand Canyon of Mars.

A New Logo, A New Vision for Mars Travel

2015-03-24T09:41:00.000-04:00

As you can probably see, I have changed the Mars Travel logo. I've been neglecting this blog for a while trying to figure out the direction I'd like to take it. I finally think I have an answer.

I want to use this blog as a means of increasing popular support for the space industry by creating products that can be easily shared online or through more traditional means, If these products are shared enough I hope to help reinvigorate the public conversation about space. The more we can get people to take an interest in space, the more they will talk about it, thus increasing support for the industry.

Essentially I want to help market the space industry, Mars Travel's piece of that is to create easy to distribute products showcasing and provoking discussion of space exploration and discovery. The new logo pairs with the name Mars Travel, and makes such a connection intuitive, just by looking at it.

One of my true passions is space exploration and discovery. When I was a kid I wanted to be an astronaut (what kid doesn't?). As I grew up I became more realistic, but I never lost my fascination with space and the literally limitless possibilities that it represents. As I grew older I started working in media relations and marketing, and later, logistics. After a few years I decided to apply my media relations skills to space, eventually becoming the Media Relations Director (a volunteer position) for The Mars Initiative, a position I held for the entirety for 2013.

But that's not enough. I want to market the space industry. This blog and related endeavors will be my attempt at doing so. I hope that you and others will join me in bringing the wonders and potential of space back into the public eye. Humans naturally crave exploration, we just have to remind them what it feels like to look into the great beyond and discover.

The Path Forged Alone

2015-03-24T01:39:00.000-04:00

This image of the path left by Curiosity is truly awe-inspiring as it shows just how alone she is on Mars. This also goes to show how "the path forged alone is often the most enlightening" because the discoveries made by Curiosity have given humanity a brand new perspective on the history of Mars and our place in the solar system.

View All Space Fliers

Space Flier - Looking for a New Home?

2014-12-10T12:48:00.000-05:00

Mars Travel's first flier seeking to get people talking more about space. Please print off and post around your local area.

Please spread this and other space material far and wide so we can help raise public awareness and excitement of space exploration and discovery. A good starting point would to use this image as a flier and post it within your local community, or on your social media. The more space advocates we create, the louder our voice will be!

View All Space Fliers

Increasing Support for the Space Industry

2014-12-10T12:15:00.000-05:00

As promised in my last post, Mars Travel is beginning to create material that can be used to market the space industry. One of the ways this will be done is by creating fliers that can be posted anywhere and everywhere. They will likely all be fairly simple, but the goal is just to get people thinking and talking about space.

If we have any hope of increasing support for the space industry, we have to boost awareness, which will in turn increase interest. Mainstream media is not the answer and I'd venture to say that most readers of space-related websites are already space industry supporters. So how do we get the attention of the rest of the world? Right now, space is out of sight, out of mind for most people. We must make it so that space cannot be ignored.

Imagine walking through a city and seeing a space related flier every couple blocks. Imagine seeing a space flier in the doorway of your favorite local restaurant, or in the waiting room of your local hospital. What if you ordered take-out and there was a cool space fact on the menu? How about if you were driving to work and you heard something fascinating about space on the radio?

People would start talking about space again. People would start getting excited about discovery. That's what we need if we want to increase support for the space industry–interest.
You and I can make that happen. We can print off fliers and post them in our surrounding area. Many people already supportive of the space industry work in industries and positions that they can leverage to increase visibility of the space industry. Own a restaurant? Consider adding a space fact on the back of your menu. Work in an office? Why not hang a space photo or poster up? Are you a teacher? Why not share one cool space fact with your class everyday? As the famed Japanese writer Ryūnosuke Akutagawa so eloquently put it, "Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean." Every individual effort, no matter how seemingly insignificant will compound and together those efforts can bring about a monumental surge in humanity's support for our continued expansion into space.

This blog will post fliers that you can print off and post around town, as well as other marketing material for the space industry. In short, I will do everything I can to help you increase support for the space industry.

Those of us that want to see more space research and exploration in the future can crowdmarket the space industry. And Mars Travel will make it easy by providing the materials and suggestions for use. Please see the Mars Travel Facebook Album for all fliers produced to date.

---
DAVID J GEANEY
"Mind Over Matter"

Crowdmarketing the Space Industry

2014-12-06T18:00:00.000-05:00

I've been away from this blog for over a year, though it hasn't been for lack of interest in Mars and the space industry. And while I have had a busy year – my son was born, we just moved to Korea, and I’ve been working on my Master’s Degree – that isn’t what has kept me from continuing to blog about Mars.

I lost my motivation for writing about Mars because I felt it wasn’t accomplishing what I wanted it to. Let me explain:

No matter how many fascinating photos of Mars or the rest of the solar system were sent back to Earth, most people don’t see them. It doesn’t matter if I write about them on my blog or even if the big space websites showcase them; only a small fraction of people are going to go out of their way to find them. Occasionally there will be a big news item that gets some high visibility like when Rosetta landed, or Orion launched, but then the coverage drops off. Space exploration is something out of sight, out of mind for most of the public. They don’t see or hear about how fascinating it is every day.

You see it. If you are reading this you are probably astounded by the vast beauty of space. You understand how much we learn by exploring and studying space. You want more! I want more. Millions of people want more. Unfortunately, we are a minority. Most of the world won’t find all those fascinating images, or read about how space research is beneficial to everyone. A blog or website about space is going to attract people that are already enthralled with space, but the people we should and must be targeting are those that are not already passionate about space.

That realization stopped me and my blog in its tracks. Every time I would sit down to write a post I wondered if it would make a difference—would this post encourage someone to start believing that space development was important? Probably not. So for the past 16 months I have racked my brain trying to figure out how to increase awareness of the space industry.

The public doesn’t see how much further exploration and research of space would advance our technology and enhance our lives. Space is out of sight, out of mind for the majority of the public. But what if people heard something about space every day? What if we could make it impossible for people to go even a single day without encountering something about a mission, discovery, or fascinating aspect of space? People would start talking about space and what they saw or heard. With more awareness people would start to become more interested and more excited about missions to come, thus support for the space industry will increase. More support leads to more crowdfunded space initiatives, more crowdsourced research, and more pressure on politicians to make space development a greater priority.

That is why I’ve decided to use this blog and the marketing experience I have to help market space exploration and development. I will create items that you can use to promote the space agency in your local area. I will develop and post fliers, design banners, develop newpaper ads, memes etc. That way all you have to do to promote the space industry is put up some of the fliers or submit a pre-designed space promotion ad. In short, Mars Travel will produce relevant marketing material for space advocates everywhere. By crowdmarketing the space industry we will increase awareness, spark interest, and boost support for further exploration of space. Together we can propel humanity to the stars and break these earthly bonds.

Mars Science Laboratory's First Autonomous Drive

2013-08-28T22:51:00.002-04:00

On Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity's 376th sol on Mars (August 27 2013) the rover completed its first autonomous drive on Mars, when its computers chose a route and drove the rover for 10 meters (33 feet) through previously uncharted terrain before stopping. This feature analyzes photos taken by MSL to determine a safe path ahead, enabling the rover to safely and efficiently cover ground on its own, without guidance from human controllers. This technology can identify safe routes beyond what human controllers are able to assess; thus MSL can move further every drive.

As Mark Maimore, MSL driver and mobility engineer, explained "Curiosity takes several sets of stereo pairs of images, and the rover's computer processes that information to map any geometric hazard or rough terrain. The rover considers all the paths it could take to get to the designated endpoint for the drive and chooses the best one."

Below is a mosaic of many images taken immediately following that drive. Click the image to see it in high resolution.

Mosaic of images taken by MSL on its 376th Sol on Mars. East is left and North is right (Southwest is center)
Source: NASA/JPL (Click Image for High Resolution Version)

The large mound in the left of the image is not Mount Sharp, but rather it is called Discovery Ridge and contains rocks no larger than .3 meters (1 foot) in diameter. The rise to the right of Discovery Ridge is wind-deposited material that has accumulated on the surface. This accumulation of material is approximately 4 meters (13 feet) long and lies approximately 10 meters (33 feet) from Curiosity.

MSL Curiosity - One Year on Mars

2013-08-05T01:05:00.000-04:00

One year ago today Mars Science Laboratory touched down on Mars. Since August 5th 2012 Curiosity has transmitted over 190 gigabits of data, sending more than 70,000 images back to Earth. Not only that, but Curiosity has driven over one mile and fired its laser 75,000 times at 2,000 different targets.

Click for larger image from NASA/JPL

With all that activity, many discoveries have been made, the most important of which have been identified in NASA's infographic on the right. Click the image to see the larger version from NASA.

While MSL's overall mission is to scale Mount Sharp at the center of Gale Crater and study it's various layers, the science team decided to examine nearby outcrops Glenelg and Yellow Knife which is where many of the discoveries to date have been made.

One of the most significant discoveries was that Mars once had an environment that was conducive to microbial life, but that Mars somehow lost most of it's atmosphere "through processes that occurred at the top of the atmosphere" (NASA)

The next NASA mission to Mars, Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN), launches in November of this year and will attempt to determine what caused the atmosphere to bleed into space billions of years ago.

MSL Curiosity has also discovered evidence of an ancient streambed in the form of smooth, rounded sedimentary rocks, that likely rolled with a current for many miles. Bedrock, made up of millions of smaller compacted sediments has been discovered. This type of compaction is only known to occur in the presence of flowing water.

Further evidence that Mars once contained water has been found in the form of "gravels, streambed deposits, an unusual type of possibly volcanic rock, water-transported sand dunes, mudstones, and cracks filled with mineral veins." (NASA)

For a better understanding of MSL Curiosity's one mile journey, take a look at the below annotated image from NASA.

Click to see a larger version of this annotated image from NASA

MSL Curiosity's journey began one year ago today, and in that time it has traveled one mile and made numerous discoveries. The next year will see the rover complete its primary goal of scaling Mount Sharp and provide even more insight into the past and current environment on Mars. Who knows what amazing discoveries will be made in the next year!

Kasei Valles and Echus Chasma

2013-07-17T07:30:00.000-04:00

Most people know by now that Mars once contained a massive amount of water on its surface. It was during this period that Kasei Valles (shown below) was created by flood waters on Mars.

Kasei Valles
Image Credit: European Space Agency's Mars Express

One of the largest outflow channels on Mars, Kasei Valles measures 3000 km in length with a depth of 3 km, spanning a total of 1.55 million square kilometers.

Kasei Valles
Source: HiRISE

Within Kasei Valles lies the remains of Sharanov Crater, which had its southern rim collapsed by the floods that created the valley. This 100 km wide crater is depicted at top center in the below perspective view of Kasei Valles.

Sharanov Crater in Kasei Valles perspective view
Image Credit: European Space Agency's Mars Express

The floods that created Kasei Valles are thought to have emanated from Echus Chasma, which is imaged below. Echus Chasma spans 100km long and 10km wide and cuts into Lunae Planum, which is north of Valles Marineris.

Echus Chasma
Image Credit: European Space Agency's Mars Express

Echus Chasma was likely created when an impact or tectonic shift released water from a pressurized acquifer. Much like a dam breaking with enormous pressure, the force of the water ruptured the ground, leaving the incision we call Echus Chasma.

Echus Chasma
Image Credit: European Space Agency's Mars Express

The resulting release of water flooded the area directly north of Echus Chasma, thus creating Kasei Valles.

See other photos of Mars showcased by Mars Travel!

NASA's InSight Mission to Mars

2013-07-02T06:29:00.000-04:00

In August 2012, around the same time that Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity landed in Gale Crater, NASA announced a new mission to Mars. This new mission is called InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) and has a planned launch date of March 2016.

InSight will place a single lander on Mars in September 2016 with the capability of studying deep below the surface of the planet for a two year mission.

The lander will measure the seismology and internal temperature of planet Mars at varying levels. It will be able to determine whether Mars has a solid or liquid core and ascertain why Mars does not have tectonic plates similar to Earth. Understanding these facets of Mars as compared to Earth will provide insight into the formation of the other rocky planets in our inner solar system, including Earth, Venus, and Mercury.

An artist's rendition of proposed InSight Lander.
Source: NASA/JPL

InSight will be an international collaboration, with one of its four instruments coming from France's space agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and another from the German Aerospace Center.

Click to Keep Reading

Western Rim of Endeavour Crater Digital Terrain Model

2013-06-30T21:01:00.000-04:00

The labeled image below is a digital terrain model (DTM) of the Western rim of Endeavour Crater overlain with a northward perspective from HiRISE and compositional data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM). This is the area Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has been investigating since 2011.

Click to see hires version from HiRISE

This image has been instrumental in planning Opportunity's movements and continuously developing mission. As indicated in the image above, orbital data has identified areas where clay (red), sulfate (green), and volcanic (blue) minerals could be present. Clays and sulfates are indicative of a watery past on Mars as they often only form in the presence of significant moisture.

Opportunity is currently around Cape York, but heading south in an attempt to discover more about the geology of Endeavour Crater.

See other photos of Mars showcased by Mars Travel!

1.3 Billion Pixel Mosaic from Mars Science Laboratory

2013-06-19T21:25:00.002-04:00

Below is a panoramic mosaic of Mars compiled from almost 900 images taken by Mars Science Laboratory. Click on the image to see the interactive photo with over 1.3 billion pixels, then zoom in on any feature that interests you!

Click above to view the interactive 1.3 billion pixel image from MSL Curiosity!
Source: NASA/JPL

This images used to create this mosaic was taken while Curiosity was at Rocknest between October 5 and November 16 2013. The center of the image is directly south of the rover, while the right and left edges are north of it.

Definitely click on this image so that you can view all 1.3 billion magnificent pixels of Mars!

See other photos of Mars showcased by Mars Travel!

'Rat' on Mars

2013-06-01T22:39:00.001-04:00

Recently a lot of people have been talking about a 'Rat' on Mars, so I thought I'd show you what all the fuss is about. To see this supposed 'rat' click on the first image for the high resolution version from NASA then zoom in on the upper left corner. See anything?

Click on the image for the High Resolution version from NASA then zoom in on the upper left corner. See anything?

What you might think is an animal is actually a psychological phenomena called pareidolia where your brain interprets vague objects as familiar shapes, or in this case, an animal. This is an evolutionary trait in humans that once allowed us to easily identify predators on the horizon because we could easily identify their faces and features

In case you can't find the 'rat' in the photo above, I've included the zoomed in and circled version that Huffington Post compiled from UFO Sightings Daily below. UFO Sightings Daily was the first to report on the 'rat'.

While I believe this 'rat' on Mars is simply pareidolia, yet again on Mars, I leave it up to you to decide whether it is a 'rat' or simply your mind playing a trick on you.

The Radiation Dilemma

2013-06-01T10:58:00.001-04:00

Data from Mars Science Laboratory's Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) is enabling scientists to accurately assess the level of radiation exposure experienced during a mission to Mars. Understanding the risks faced by astronauts on future manned missions to Mars will help scientists mitigate those risks. But what exactly are the risks?

Scientists have determined that the crew on a round-trip human mission to Mars would be exposed to 100 times the amount of radiation the average person experiences on an annual basis. The amount of radiation exposure faced by the crew could increase their risk of cancer by 5%, which is outside NASA's acceptable parameters. The risk increases if the astronauts land on Mars because they will not be shielded by the ship and Mars lacks a magnetic field like Earth's to shield people from radiation. The below graphic from NASA compares the level of radiation exposure from several experiences, including a round-trip mission to Mars.

Comparing Radiation of a Manned Missioon to Mars with Other Activities (NASA)

While the level of radiation exposure is important to understand and mitigate, there is no reason why it should be a show-stopper for space missions. Just as a soldier signs up for the military knowing he could get shot at, an astronaut knows they could die from a spacecraft malfunction or radiation exposure, among other things. These risks, while not inconsequential, are acceptable, as long as before the mission the crew understands and accepts the risks.

Not only that, but governments have no standing to prevent astronauts from embarking on potentially hazardous missions. There are numerous legal activities that increase a person's risk of cancer exponentially more than a trip to Mars. According to a study at Oxford, cigarette smoking causes a "25-fold increase in lung cancer risk in men smoking 25 cigarettes a day or more, compared to lifelong non-smokers," (Cancer Research UK) yet the government still allows people to smoke as many cigarettes as they want. Why then should astronauts be limited on how much risk they can take?

If governments refuse to allow astronauts to take the risks inherent in their job, then it will be dependent on private corporations unhindered by unnecessary regulations to begin human exploration of the solar system in earnest.

Counting Impact Craters on Mars

2013-05-16T09:48:00.006-04:00

NASA has recently finished a study in which they determined the approximate number of asteroid and comet impacts on Mars every year. Using data collected by Mars Reconnaisance Orbiter (MRO) scientists have estimated there are 200 small craters formed every year on Mars as a result of asteroid and comet impacts. These craters measure at least 3.9 meters (12.8 feet) across.

MRO was able to image craters previously detected by itself and other Mars orbiters. Images of the same spots on Mars are taken at different times, thus if an older image does not show a crater, but a more recent one does, we know the impact occured before the most recent image, but after the one previous. This technique allows scientists to more accurately determine the age of craters on the surface.

Understanding the frequency of impacts is important to our understanding of Mars' past and allows scientists to more accurately determine the age of features on the planet. A feature or region with less impact craters is much younger than one with more craters because we know that overtime a feature on Mars will accumulate more impacts. The science will never be perfect, but can at least give us a better understanding of Mars and its development.

For example, scientists will be better able to determine the age of Hadley Crater based on the number of small craters within it. Just look at the image below and you will see that even within Hadley Crater there are multiple smaller craters.

Click to see the original high resolution image from Mars Express [See ESA article]

Previous estimates placed the number of yearly impacts on the Martian surface at 3 to 10 times the amount recently calculated. Those previous studies were done in the 1960s and 1970s and based off studies of lunar craters. MRO's HiRISE Principal Investigator Alfred McEwen says that this new study means "Mars now has the best-known current rate of cratering in the solar system," meaning that of all the bodies in the solar system, Mars is the one we are best able to determine the frequency of asteroid and comet impacts on.

Source:

Dwayne Brown, Guy Webster, Daniel Stolte. NASA Probe Counts Space Rock Impacts on Mars. 15 May 2013.NASA http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2013/may/HQ_13-142_Mars_MRO_Craters.html (accessed 15 May 2013)

Mars Travel's Mars Photo of the Day - 15 Sept 2012

Russian Citizen Scientists Have Likely Discovered Mars 3 Lander

2013-04-12T16:03:00.007-04:00

Recently, Russian citizen scientists claimed to have found the remnants of the failed Mars 3 Lander, which landed on Mars on December 2 1971, but had a communication failure after transmitting for only 14.5 seconds. This speculation led the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Team to further investigate the proposed sites on March 10 2013. Below you will see an image explaining what they investigated. To see the enlarged version from HiRISE simply click on the image below.

The candidiate descent module/retrorocket can be seen in the image above as well. It had a 4.5 meter chain attaching it to the lander, which is also visible. While the line is 4.8 meters, this difference could be explained if one assumes that it's momentum dragged it slightly across the surface. To best see this feature you will need to view the larger image from HiRISE by clicking on the image above.

The candidate site for the parachute can be seen below. I'm betting you can guess where it is even in this small version, but if you can't just click on it to see the larger high defintion image from HiRISE.

The parachute is the unusually bright spot right in the center of the image, which measures approximately 7.5 meters in diameter. Mars 3 had a paerachute that measured 11 meters in diameter if fully spread out, so a 7.5 meter diameter is consistent in that the parachute would most likely not be completely unfurled. In previous images of the area the parachute was likely covered in dust because the bright spot seen in the most recent image was not there. It's likely that the wind blew dust off the parachute recently, making its white color stand out against the backdrop of the Martian surface.

In 2007 HiRISE took an image of the the predicted landing site for the Mars-3 lander in Ptolemaeus Crater, but according to their website that image "contains 1.8 billion pixels of data, so about 2,500 typical computer screens would be needed to view the entire image at full resolution. Promising candidates for the hardware from Mars 3 were found only very recently." (HiRISE 2013)

The Russian citizen scientists were members of Russia's largest online community about Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity, started by Vitali Erogov. They crowdsourced the preliminary research that led to finding the candidate site for Mars 3. Vitali Erogov then compiled the below graphic of the candidate Mars 3 hardware pieces.

While all of these images match to what would be expected of the corresponding hardware, there is still some investigation to be done. Further analysis of the data, as well as current and future images, will help scientists to verify these findings and potentially determine what caused the communication failure in the first place. While the latter is a long-shot, you never know! For right now though, it looks like we have finally discovered Mars 3!

If nothing else, this just goes to show you the importance of citizen scientists. There is so much data out there it is impossible for scientists to look at it all, but when ordinary people take their free time to examine the data they can make extraordinary disoveries. I encourage every space enthusiast to join one of these citizen science programs by participating in NASA citizen science programs.

One of the biggest programs, whose participants have made numerous historic discoveries is Planet Hunters, which enlists people like you to help discover new planets. Planet Hunters has had and will continue to have enormous impact not only on the scientific community, but on all of mankind, as one day we must find a planet that we can survive on and colonize it, else we keep the fat eof our entire species tied to that of a single planet or solar system.

So if you have some free time, join Planet Hunters and help humanity live on forever!

Mars Solar Conjunction Limits Communication From Earth, Mars

2013-04-05T23:39:00.002-04:00

Due to a Mars Solar Conjunction, an alignment where the Sun blocks the line of sight between Earth and Mars, there will be limited communication with the rovers or orbiters on Mars until May 1 2013.This particular planetary alignment began on April 4. Because of the interference from the Sun, any communications risks getting garbled on its way from Earth to Mars or vice versa. If we were to send a command to a rover and it became scrambled the rover could easily be put in danger, so scientists generally send a large number of sequenced, toned-back commands before Mars Solar Conjunctions.

Diagram Depicting a Mars Solar Conjunction

Both Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity and Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity are prohibited from driving, so instead they are tasked with studying their surroundings. The rovers will continue sending brief tones to Earth so that the science teams can assess their safety. NASA's orbiting Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and the ESA's Mars Express Orbiter will continue to make observations of the planet, based on pre-input directions, but the latter two will most likely not transmit any data back to Earth until May 1 2013. Mars Odyssey will transmit some data back to Earth over the next month.

This is Curiosity's first time going through a Mars Solar Conjunction, which occurs every two years, but Opportunity has been through a handful of them, so there isn't much to be concerned about. Be sure to check back in on them once communications are reestablished!

Examining Images of Aureum Chaos for Change

2013-03-21T12:38:00.000-04:00

The primary source of erosion on Mars today is the wind. Scientists try to learn more about the wind and the changes it makes to the surface by studying images of Mars. To find these changes we often have to examine two pictures from a location taken at different times. This is true of the below photos taken of Aureum Chaos.

Acquired two Mars years ago. Source: HiRISE

Source: HiRISE

Although the above images are not exact overlays of one another, one can still pinpoint areas present in both images. Once done scientists can determine if there have been any changes or movements to material in the area. Although a preliminary look shows no changes in the past two years, a more fine-tuned examination will likely reveal minor changes.

Studying changes to the terrain allows scientists to assess the real affect of the wind on the environment. Knowing this will help us to know what we might see on the ground and what to watch out for on future prolonged missions to the surface. Imagine if you are living on Mars and you wake up one day to see rocks moved and sand displaced you might be disconcerted, but if you know about the wind you won't worry as much. Understanding how much effect the wind has on the surface also ensures that scientists take frequent images of landing areas because they know what might be a smooth area one week could be rocky terrain the next.

Studying images like the ones above ensures scientists learn the most they can about the wind on Mars and its effects on the environment.

See All Images of Mars Showcased by Mars Travel!

Sampling the Surface of Mars

2013-03-05T16:39:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity, we know that Mars is a familar grey just below the surface. The image below shows the area where MSL first used its rock abrasion tool to remove a surface layer of dust, exposing the underlying grey rock, named Ekwir_1.

Source: NASA (Click image to see larger, captioned original)

MSL then drilled into a separate rock, dubbed John Klein, on 8 Feb 2013, or Sol 182 of its operation on Mars. This was the first sample drilling conducted by MSL on Mars. The below hole measures 6.4 centimeters (2.5 inches) deep.

Source: NASA (Click image to see larger original)

After drilling, MSL transfeered a powdered sample of the rock from the drill into its sample collection scoop. The below image, taken on 20 Feb 2013, shows the powdered rock sample obtained from the drilling. This is the first ever interior sample of a rock taken on another planet. Currently, MSL is examining small portions of the sample through the its Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument and Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument. The samples were processed into both analysis intruments on the 22nd and 23rd of February, but due to a computer issue the samples have yet to be analyzed.

Source: NASA (Click image to see larger, captioned original)

John Klein is a veiny, fined grained sedimentary rock. It was chosen as the first location for drilling because it likely holds evidence of past wet conditions on Mars. MSL's analysis of the powdered sample will give us insight to the past environment on Mars.

On 28 February MSL's science team switched to a redundant onboard computer in response to a memory failure on the original, previously active computer. The transition resulted in the rover going into safe mode until 4 March, at which point it entered active status again. Despite this, the rover won't become fully operational for another few days.

Because of the computer issue MSL hasn't been able to analyze the powdered rock sample, but once systems come back on line we should see results within the subsequent few days. What will we find out about the past environment of Mars? Will we find out that Mars was or habitable? We can only guess for now, but within a week we should have the results back!

Americans Anticipate Manned Mission to Mars Within 20 Years

2013-02-13T02:01:00.001-05:00

According to a poll dubbed Mars Generation, Approximately 71% of Americans are excited for and anticipate a manned mission to Mars in the next 20 years, with more than half of American's feeling NASA should "play a strong role" in assisting a commercial company, or head up a mission themselves.

In the same poll, conducted by Phillips & Company and sponsored by The Boeing Corporation and Explore Mars, a majority of respondents incorrectly answered that they felt NASA's budget represented 2.5% of the federal budget (~$88.5 Billion). When presented with the reality that NASA's Fiscal Year 2013 budget sits at about .5% ($17.7 Billion) of the federal budget, 75% of those polled felt the Agency's funding should be doubled to 1% ($35.4 Billion) of the federal budget, with the express purpose of funding a manned mission to Mars.

Chris Carberry, Executive Director of Explore Mars, the non-profit that sponsored the Mars Generation poll proclaimed, “Despite difficult economic times, the American people are still inspired by space exploration and are committed to human exploration of Mars. This is a wake up call to our leaders that Americans are still explorers.” The poll showed this adventurous spirit is exemplified in the top three reasons Americans support a manned mission to Mars: to support a greater understanding of the planet, to search for signs of life on Mars, and to maintain American leadership in space. 73% feel a major hurdle to a manned mission to mars is affordability and 67% feel politics will be a large impediment to success.

An executive committee member of The Mars Initiative, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization unaffiliated with this study, interpreted these results as a sign of the American people's continued fascination with space: "Americans want space exploration to be more of a national priority. This poll should serve as a message for America's leaders that their citizens want to see more of a commitment to the space industry, not less." A full report on the poll's findings will be released on 4 March 2013.

Let's hope America's leaders take note of this poll, but in the meantime, I encourage you to keep following news about Mars and sharing it with people you know. The more people we have that support missions to Mars, the more likely it will become a national, or even global priority.

One easy way you are guaranteed to support the first manned mission to Mars is by joining The Mars Initiative, so I encourage you to take a look!