Mountain View CA (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
New research published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters suggests that Mars was born wet, with a dense atmosphere allowing warm-to-hot oceans for millions of years. To reach this conclusion, researchers developed the first model of the evolution of the Martian atmosphere that links the high temperatures associated with Mars's formation in a molten state through to the formation of the first

Greenbelt MD (SPX) Sep 21, 2022
The Moon's craters preserve billions of years of history. Scientists have learned about the conditions of our early solar system by studying the composition, size, and distribution of these holes in the Moon's surface, created long ago by collisions with asteroids. But instead of directly studying the characteristics of these holes, a team based at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Gre

Pasadena CA (JPL) Sep 22, 2022
Coming into planning, we were ready for a standard "Touch and Go" plan, where we do some early morning science and then drive onto our next location. However, our workspace had some really great bedrock within arm reach, so we decided to convert the plan into a "Stay and Play" type of plan instead and spend more time characterizing the rocks here. On the first sol of the plan, APXS and MAH

San Antonio TX (SPX) Sep 21, 2022
The search for extraterrestrial life just got more interesting as a team of scientists including Southwest Research Institute's Dr. Christopher Glein has discovered new evidence for a key building block for life in the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus. New modeling indicates that Enceladus's ocean should be relatively rich in dissolved phosphorus, an essential ingredient for life.

Brussels, Belgium (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
A four-legged robot trained through artificial intelligence has learned the same lesson as the Apollo astronauts - that jumping can be the best way to move around on the surface the Moon. An update on LEAP (Legged Exploration of the Aristarchus Plateau), a mission concept study funded by ESA to explore some of the most challenging lunar terrains, has been presented at the Europlanet Science Cong

Beijing (XNA) Sep 22, 2022
China's manned space program, initiated 30 years ago, has grown more popular among Chinese people, who return with extensive support and a vision for space exploration. On Sept. 21, 1992, China officially approved its manned space program, coded as "Project 921". The first batch of Chinese astronauts were all recruited from elite pilots of China's air force. Among them were Yang Liwe

National Harbor MD (AFNS) Sep 22, 2022
In a speech that was as much an unofficial farewell as a proud update of the U.S. Space Force's youthful evolution, Chief of Space Operations, Gen. John "Jay" Raymond told an influential audience Sept. 20 that the service is on a strong footing and that it has deftly avoided two major traps. The first, Raymond told Guardians and Airmen during his keynote address at the Air Force Associatio

Toronto, Canada (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
Paleontologists have identified a new genus and species of algae called Protocodium sinense which predates the origin of land plants and modern animals and provides new insight into the early diversification of the plant kingdom. Discovered at a site in China, this 541-million-year-old fossil is the first and oldest green alga from this era to be preserved in three dimensions, enabling the

Maxwell AFB, AL (SPX) Sep 22, 2022
On Sept. 26, 2022, NASA plans to change an asteroid's orbit. The large binary asteroid Didymos and its moonlet Dimorphos currently pose no threat to Earth. But by crashing a 1,340-pound (610-kilogram) probe into Didymos' moon at a speed of approximately 14,000 mph (22,500 kph), NASA is going to complete the world's first full-scale planetary defense mission as a proof of concept. This mission is

Paris (AFP) Sept 23, 2022
After NASA deliberately smashes a car-sized spacecraft into an asteroid next week, it will be up to the European Space Agency's Hera mission to investigate the "crime scene" and uncover the secrets of these potentially devastating space rocks. NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) aims to collide with the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos on Monday night, hoping to slightly alter its traje