• news
  • tech
  • spaceflight
  • science & astronomy
  • search for life
  • skywatching
  • video
  • Entertainment
  • news
  • tech
  • spaceflight
  • science & astronomy
  • search for life
  • skywatching
  • video
  • Entertainment
news tech spaceflight science & astronomy search for life skywatching video Entertainment
  • Space.com
  • Science & Astronomy

10 Amazing Mars Discoveries by Rovers Spirit & Opportunity

By SPACE.com Staff | January 23, 2013 05:35pm ET
  • Photo Credit: NASA/JPL
    Slide 1 of 21

    Amazing Mars Discoveries By Rovers Spirit & Opportunity

    The robotic rovers Spirit and Opportunity arrived on Mars in January 2004 to search for clues of past water activity. They were designed to last three months. But the plucky explorers far exceeded anyone's expectations. Spirit kept chugging for more than six years, finally ceasing communications with Earth in March 2010; Opportunity is still going strong. The data the pair has beamed back not only shed light on Mars' past and present, but could also help humans prepare for life there in the future.
  • Born in a Fiery Explosion

    Photo Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
    Slide 2 of 21
  • Born in a Fiery Explosion

    Spirit's discovery of basaltic rock at its landing site, Gusev Crater, strongly suggested the region was the product of a volcanic explosion during which magma and water had mixed.
    Slide 3 of 21
  • Dust Devils

    Photo Credit: NASA/JPL
    Slide 4 of 21
  • Dust Devils

    In 2005, Spirit managed to film a bevy of dust devils twisting across the Martian landscape. The clip gave scientists a rare glimpse into one of the few active processes still shaping the surface of Mars today.
    Slide 5 of 21
  • Photographing Earth-like Clouds

    Photo Credit: NASA/JPL.
    Slide 6 of 21
  • Photographing Earth-like Clouds

    Among their many firsts, the rovers photographed Earth-like clouds in the Martian sky for the first time from the planet's surface.
    Slide 7 of 21
  • Alien Meteorite

    Photo Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
    Slide 8 of 21
HomeAbout Us
Company
  • Company Info
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Using Our Content
  • Licensing & Reprints
  • Terms of Use
  • Copyright Policy
  • Privacy Policy
Network
  • Top Ten Reviews
  • Tom's Guide
  • Laptop Mag
  • Tom's Hardware
  • Business News Daily
  • Tom's IT Pro
  • Space.com
  • Live Science
  • Active Junky
  • ShopSavvy
  • AnandTech
  • Dignifyed
FOLLOW US
SUBSCRIBE TO SPACE
Purch

Copyright © All Rights Reserved.