Mars's crust is thin, which suggests the planet once cooled itself through a kind of plate tectonics.
Two years ago, NASA's InSight spacecraft alighted on the surface of Mars, aiming to glean clues to the planet's interior from the shaking of distant earthquakes and deep heat leaking from its soil. Mars, it turned out, had other ideas. Its sticky soil has thwarted InSight's heat probe, and in recent months howling winds have deafened its sensitive seismometers. Most mysteriously, the planet hasn't been rattled by the large marsquakes that could vividly illuminate its depths.
And here's another article:
Powerful electrical events quickly alter surface chemistry on Mars, other planetary bodies --
Thinking like Earthlings may have caused scientists to overlook the electrochemical effects of Martian dust storms.
On Earth, dust particles are viewed mainly in terms of their physical effects, like erosion. But, in exotic locales from Mars to Venus to Jupiter's icy moon Europa, electrical effects can affect the chemical composition of a planetary body's surface and atmosphere in a relatively short time, according to new research from Washington University in St. Louis.
NASA spacecraft spots Babylon 5 villain lookalike in Mars formation - CNET
This view of Mars from 2020 shows where a meteorite hit the surface and blasted the dust off of the landscape, leaving behind dark streaks.
The actual explanation for the wild appearance has nothing to do with aliens. We're seeing is a crater created by a meteorite. The dark, spidery-looking areas on the sides of the crater are free of dust.
World's space achievements a bright spot in stressful 2020
It promises to do the same in 2021, with February's landings at Mars and next fall's planned launch of the Hubble Space Telescope's successor — the next-generation James Webb Space Telescope.
Boeing hopes to catch up with SpaceX in the astronaut-launching department, while space tourism may finally get off the ground.
"2021 promises to be as much of a space exploration bright spot, perhaps even more," said Scott Hubbard, NASA's former "Mars Czar" now teaching at Stanford University.
Quite a lot has been going on:
NASA administrator talks concentration on bipartisan efforts to reach moon, Mars during inaugural
Astronaut Andrew Morgan of NASA, whose U.S. spacesuit is outfitted with a variety of tools and cameras, holds on to a handrail. (Courtesy NASA)
Now is the chance to help your local community succeed. Become a Patron by contributing to Community Impact Newspaper and gain daily insight into what's happening in your own backyard. Thank you for reading and supporting community journalism.
* * *
With all 12 Galveston County voting centers reporting, it appears John P. Bowen and Justin A. Hicks will be the next League City City Council members.
Mars mission Tianwen-1 functioning normally - SHINE News
The probe for China's first Mars mission Tianwen-1 is currently more than 100 million kilometers away from Earth and is functioning normally, according to the China National Space Administration.
As of 9pm on Monday, the Mars probe had flown in space for 144 days and traveled more than 360 million km. It was more than 100 million km away from Earth and about 12 million km away from Mars.
The distance between the red planet and Earth varies periodically from 50 million to more than 400 million km. The Mars probe will likely be about 190 million km away from Earth when it reaches the vicinity of Mars.
Scientists spot 'previously unrecognized' water ice reservoir on Mars - CNET
NASA's MRO spacecraft captured this view of a part of Nereidum Montes on Mars. Researchers believe there are some large water ice deposits in this region.
When humans get to Mars one day, they'll have some pressing needs. One of those is water. Water is heavy and hard to transport through space, so ideally they'll be able to find what they need to survive on Mars itself.
VFFs have been compared with glacial formations on Earth and could be a potential source of water for astronauts.
SpaceX Starship prototype exploded, but it's still a giant leap towards Mars
Private company SpaceX launched SN8, a prototype of its Starship spacecraft , designed to go to the Moon and Mars, on December 10. Its short flight attracted a great deal of attention for it's final few seconds before landing – when it exploded.
But consider the near perfect totality of its six-and-a-half-minute flight. Look at the groundbreaking technology and manoeuvres involved. It is reasonable to view this as a hugely successful test.
Ordinary spacecraft return to Earth by using the "aerodynamic drag" in the atmosphere to slow their re-entry. Decelerating from 20,000 mph dissipates a lot of heat which is why they carry heat shields, and the final touchown is controlled by parachutes. The actual rocket engines don't make a safe landing – they burn up and crash into the sea.
No comments:
Post a Comment