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Mars

Mars, the Red Planet, is the fourth planet from the sun.

Related Topics: Curiosity Mars Rover Mission, ExoMars, India Mars Orbiter Mission, Mars Rover Opportunity, Maven Mars Mission 

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Top Space Stories of the Week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia

These are the top space stories this week from Space.com.

The Mars Color Imager (MARCI) camera onboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) shows the typical state of Mars, seen here in May 2018, and what the planet looked like during a planet-encircling dust storm in July 2018.

Massive 'Dust Towers' on Mars Look Like Supersized Versions of Earth's Thunderstorms

By Doris Elin Urrutia

Massive dust towers on Mars that formed during global storms may be 'space elevators' that contributed to the loss of the planet's ancient water, according to NASA's description of new research.

As November begins, Mercury will be in the western evening sky and swinging sunward towards inferior conjunction on November 11, when the speedy planet will transit the sun. The transit will be visible in whole or in part from westernmost Russia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, South America, North America (except for the extreme north), most of the Pacific Ocean, and New Zealand. After mid-month, Mercury will return to view with an excellent morning apparition for Northern Hemisphere observers, but a poor one for the Southern Hemisphere. The planet will reach peak visibility at greatest western elongation on November 28. Viewed in a telescope during mornings in November, Mercury's disk will diminish in apparent size and wax in illuminated phase from a thin crescent to a 68% full. Over the same period, the planet will brighten. The old crescent moon will pass north of Mercury on November 24-25.

The Brightest Visible Planets in December's Night Sky: How to See them (and When)

By Joe Rao

Here's how to see planets visible in December's night sky.

The first selfie taken by NASA’s InSight lander on Mars. The 11-image composite, which was released on Dec. 11, 2018, shows the lander's solar panels and deck. Atop the deck are InSight’s science instruments, weather sensor booms and UHF antenna. The science instruments would later be deployed onto the Martian surface.

Happy Mars-iversary, InSight! NASA Lander Marks 1 Year on Red Planet

By Mike Wall

How time does fly: NASA's InSight Mars lander has now been on the Red Planet for a full (Earth) year.

The bacteria S. oneidensis "mines" magnetite from Martian soil and could be a useful resource to send to Mars before humans.

Should We Send Bacteria to Mars Before Humans?

By Chelsea Gohd

Could humanity's future on Mars be built on a foundation of … bacteria?

A data visualization generated by a supercomputer shows clouds growing and fading over a Martian day.

Watch Clouds on Mars Drift by in Supercomputer Simulations

By Meghan Bartels

Weather models are a daily staple of life on Earth, but they can go interplanetary as well, sometimes with a boost from Earth's most sophisticated computers.

A professor at the University of Ohio claims that the Martian landscape might be littered with insect and reptile-like life-forms. However, other scientists refute this claim.

It's Still Not Aliens: 'Mars Bug' Claim Could Damage the Search for Life

By Chelsea Gohd

A professor suggests there are bugs on Mars, but this questionable claim could hurt the search for life, experts say.

China's new facility for making simulated Mars landings, which the country is using to prep for a Red Planet mission scheduled to launch in 2020.

Watch China Simulate a Mars Landing for 2020 Mission to Red Planet (Video)

By Leonard David

China just tested out its brand-new facility for simulating Mars landings, marking a big step in the nation's planned march to the Red Planet.

Lighter colors represent higher elevation in this image of Jezero Crater on Mars, the landing site for NASA's Mars 2020 mission. The oval indicates the landing ellipse, where the rover will be touching down on Mars.

NASA's Life-Hunting Mars 2020 Rover Will Search for Alien Microfossils

By Mike Wall

If life once existed in Jezero Crater, signs of it may well persist there to this day.

The Dallol hydrothermal pools are harsh environments.

Scientists Find a Spot Where No Life Can Survive. That's Bad News for Alien Hunters.

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

This alien-like world is filled with hydrothermal pools that are some of the most extreme environments on the planet

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover imaged these drifting clouds on May 17, 2019, the 2,410th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, using its black-and-white Navigation Cameras.

1st Methane, Now Oxygen: Another Possible 'Biosignature' Gas Is Acting Weird on Mars

By Mike Wall

Another possible biosignature gas is behaving strangely in Mars' air.

The nearly full supermoon Beaver Moon rises over the Syr Darya river near the Baikonur Cosmodrome spaceport in Kazakhstan on Nov. 13, 2016 in this view by NASA photographer Bill Ingalls.

November Full Moon 2019: See the 'Beaver Moon' (and Meteors) Tonight!

By Jesse Emspak

The full moon of November, called the Beaver Moon, will shine in the constellation Aries on Nov. 12, the same day as the peak of the Northern Taurid meteor shower.

This time-lapse video, taken on Oct. 9, 2019, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, captures the move of the Mars 2020 rover into a large vacuum chamber for testing in Mars-like environmental conditions

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Treks into Vacuum Chamber for Red Planet Survival Tests

By Samantha Mathewson

NASA's Mars 2020 rover was moved into a vacuum chamber and tested under Mars-like environmental conditions to prepare for its launch to the Red Planet next summer.

A photo of Mars taken by the Curiosity rover shows a bleak landscape of hills and hazy crater mountains.

The Curiosity Rover Just Took a Very Emo Photo of Its Rocky Martian Prison

By Brandon Specktor

Curiosity is the last functioning rover on Mars, and its lonely mission has taken the robot to a steep mountain in the middle of a vast crater.

This image shows an artist's depiction of a crewed mission to Mars. Geneticist Chris Mason recently sat down with Space.com to discuss the possibility of one day genetically engineering humans to protect them against the dangers of space travel and life on Mars.

Can We Genetically Engineer Humans to Survive Missions to Mars?

By Chelsea Gohd

Will we one day combine tardigrade DNA with our cells to go to Mars?

Artist's illustration of a crewed Mars base.

Mars Society Founder Makes Case for 'Mars Direct' Path to the Red Planet

By Elizabeth Howell

Both SpaceX and NASA have ideas about how to get humans to the Red Planet, but the founder of the Mars Society says there's a better way to do it.

The International Space Station in orbit around Earth.

A Journey to Mars Starts on the Space Station

By Meghan Bartels

NASA is looking for ways to make a visit to the International Space Station a little more like a voyage to Mars.

The moon could be a valuable place to learn before astronauts head to Mars.

Why Mars Base Tech Should Be Tested on the Moon First

By Elizabeth Howell

The coming generation of moon explorers should consider using lunar habitats as a test bed for future Mars missions, said a representative from the French space agency.

An artist's depiction of growing vegetables on Mars.

For Astronauts on Mars, the Veggie of the Day May Be Asparagus

By Meghan Bartels

Take it or leaf it: Mars won't offer the sort of veggie options on display at your neighborhood supermarket.

Space Books Recommended Reading

Best Space Books and Sci-Fi for 2019

By Space.com Staff

Space.com's editors present a reading list for space and sci-fi lovers, as well as children who are interested in astronomy and spaceflight.