Solar System Exploration: Solar System 101: Homework Helper

HOMEWORK HELPER

The Red Planet
Mars is a cold desert world. It is half the diameter of Earth and has the same amount of dry land. Like Earth, Mars has seasons, polar ice caps, volcanoes, canyons and weather, but its atmosphere is too thin for liquid water to exist for long on the surface. There are signs of ancient floods on Mars, but evidence for water now exists mainly in icy soil and thin clouds.

News

Features

People

Extreme Facts

Dictionary

1 2 3 4 5

Show All

Solar System Exploration @ 50: What the Experts Picked

Research... at a Glance

Solar System Exploration @ 50: What the Experts Picked
Here is what the experts had to say about their favorite moments last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Regenerative Fuel Cells, Energy Storage Systems for Space Applications
This talk provides an introduction to fuel cells and regenerative fuel cell systems. It also highlights the features of this technology for enabling future NASA missions to the moon, near-Earth asteroids and Mars.

There and Back Again: The Migration of Robotic Arm Technology from Mars to Earth
This talk provides an overview of the challenges of the design and use of Curiosity's robotic arm and is followed by a description of those same challenges faced by JPL's RoboSimian robot, which will compete in the Robotic Challenge.

Collision Course? A Comet Heads for Mars
A comet is heading for Mars, and there is a chance that it might hit the Red Planet in October 2014. An impact wouldn't necessarily mean the end of NASA's Mars program. But it would transform the program along with Mars itself.

Measuring Mars: The MAVEN Magnetometer
When the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission begins its journey to the Red Planet in 2013, it will carry a sensitive magnetic-field instrument built and tested by a team at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Mike Malin, President and Chief Scientist, Malin Space Science Systems
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

State of the Solar System
As the president prepares to give his annual State of the Union Address, we offer our own update from the ongoing exploration of our cosmic neighborhood.

Comet of the Century?
Later this year, "Comet ISON" could blossom into a striking naked eye object visible even in broad daylight.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Neil Gehrels, Astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Earth at Perihelion
In January, our planet made its annual closest approach to the sun. But don't expect things to warm up.

What's Next for NASA: 2013
In 2013, NASA will push ahead with an ambitious exploration program, continuing crew flights and commercial resupply missions to the International Space Station, and advancing the systems needed to send humans deeper into space.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Ashley Stroupe (Robotics Software Engineer / Mars Rover Driver at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Jim Kasting (Distinguished Professor of Geoscience at Penn State University)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Ayanna Howard (Robotics Engineer at Georgia Tech University)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Ralph Carruth (Manager, Materials and Processes Laboratory at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Amanda Hendrix (Planetary Scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Curiosity Begins Driving at Bradbury Landing
August 22, 2012: NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has begun driving from its landing site, which scientists announced today they have named for the late author Ray Bradbury.

Mars Rover Curiosity in Familiar Ground
The SUV-sized Mars rover Curiosity now finds itself just where scientists wanted it: at the northern edge and rim of Gale Crater. What's remarkable is how familiar the landscape looks.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Cassie Conley (Planetary Protection Officer at NASA Headquarters)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Mars Landing Sky Show
On the same night Curiosity lands on Mars, a "Martian Triangle" will appear in sunset skies of Earth. The first-magnitude apparition on August 5th gives space fans something to do while they wait for news from the Red Planet.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Suzanne Dodd (Project Manager for the Voyager Interstellar Mission at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Paolo Bellutta (Machine Vision Group/Mars Exploration Rover Driver at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Steve Vance (Planetary Scientist/Astrobiologist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Seeking Signs of Life at the Glacier's Edge
Microbes living at the edges of Arctic ice sheets could help researchers pinpoint evidence for similar microorganisms that could have evolved on Mars, the Jovian moon Europa, or Saturn's moon Enceladus.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: William Borucki (Science Principal Investigator for the Kepler Mission at NASA Ames Research Center)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Robert Pappalardo (Project Scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Jeff Cuzzi (Research Scientist at NASA Ames Research Center)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: David Grinspoon (Curator of Astrobiology at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

Curiosity, the Stunt Double
En route to the Red Planet, Mars rover Curiosity has experienced the strongest solar radiation storm since 2005. Researchers say this is part of Curiosity's job as a 'stunt double' for human astronauts.

Radioisotope Power Systems: Power to Explore

Research... at a Glance

Radioisotope Power Systems: Power to Explore
For more than four decades, Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) have played a critical role in the exploration of space, enabling missions of scientific discovery to destinations across the solar system.

50 Years of Robotic Planetary Exploration: Robert Mitchell (Cassini Program Manager at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
We asked them and here is what the experts had to say about the last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

"Slam Dunk" Sign of Ancient Water on Mars
As NASA's newest Mars rover Curiosity heads for the Red Planet, veteran rover Opportunity continues to make discoveries. Opportunity's latest find, an apparent vein of the mineral gypsum, is a "slam dunk" sign of past water on Mars, say researchers.

Mars Rover Well-Equipped for Studies
The Mars Science Laboratory is taking a toolbox to Mars that any researcher would be proud of. A drill, metallic brush and even a laser are part of the gear set the Mars Science Laboratory called Curiosity is taking to the red planet.

Preparing for Future Human Exploration: Measuring the Radiation Environment on Mars
Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) led the development of the Radiation Assessment Detector, which will measure, for the first time, the radiation environment on the surface of Mars, measuring all the relevant energetic particle species.

New NASA Missions to Investigate How Mars Turned Hostile
Two new NASA missions, one that will roam the surface and another that will orbit the planet and dip briefly into its upper atmosphere, will try to discover what transformed Mars.

Launch Team Focuses on Unique Needs of Curiosity
NASA is fueling the Curiosity rover with a plutonium-powered battery of sorts called a multi-mission radioisotope thermal generator, or MMRTG.

Atmospheric Modeling of Martian Methane Plumes: The Debate Continues
From recent observations, it has been suggested that there is evidence for the periodic (seasonal) release of methane occur from discrete surface locations on Mars, although the exact location and mechanism of release is still unknown.

The Strange Attraction of Gale Crater
It sounds a little odd -- a mountain in the middle of an impact crater.

Help NASA Find Life On Mars With MAPPER
Would you like to participate in NASA's analog research program? Now you can with MAPPER.

Jupiter's "Grand Tack" Reshaped the Solar System
Jupiter, long settled in its position as the fifth planet from our sun, was a rolling stone in its youth.

Out of Thin Martian Air
Mars has lost an ocean's worth of water, but to find where it all went will take satellites and computer models working in conjunction.

NASA Spacecraft Data Suggest Water Flowing on Mars
Observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have revealed possible flowing water during the warmest months on Mars.

1 2 3 4 5

Show All

1 2 3 4 5

Show All

Research... at a Glance

Solar System Exploration @ 50: What the Experts Picked
Here is what the experts had to say about their favorite moments last 50 years of planetary robotic exploration.

State of the Solar System
As the president prepares to give his annual State of the Union Address, we offer our own update from the ongoing exploration of our cosmic neighborhood.

Comet of the Century?
Later this year, "Comet ISON" could blossom into a striking naked eye object visible even in broad daylight.

Earth at Perihelion
In January, our planet made its annual closest approach to the sun. But don't expect things to warm up.

Research... at a Glance

Launch Team Focuses on Unique Needs of Curiosity
NASA is fueling the Curiosity rover with a plutonium-powered battery of sorts called a multi-mission radioisotope thermal generator, or MMRTG.

The Strange Attraction of Gale Crater
It sounds a little odd -- a mountain in the middle of an impact crater.

Help NASA Find Life On Mars With MAPPER
Would you like to participate in NASA's analog research program? Now you can with MAPPER.

Jupiter's "Grand Tack" Reshaped the Solar System
Jupiter, long settled in its position as the fifth planet from our sun, was a rolling stone in its youth.

Out of Thin Martian Air
Mars has lost an ocean's worth of water, but to find where it all went will take satellites and computer models working in conjunction.

NASA Spacecraft Data Suggest Water Flowing on Mars
Observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have revealed possible flowing water during the warmest months on Mars.

1 2 3 4 5

Show All