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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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NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover waits to be lifted onto its Atlas V launch vehicle at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on July 7, 2020.

NASA's Mars rover Perseverance mated to rocket ahead of July 30 launch

By Mike Wall

Perseverance just took another big step toward liftoff.

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this view, which was stitched together from 28 different images, from "Greenheugh Pediment" on April 9, 2020. In the foreground is the pediment's sandstone cap. At center is the "clay-bearing unit," and the floor of Gale Crater is in the distance.

NASA's Curiosity rover starts Red Planet road trip up Martian mountain

By Elizabeth Howell

Like many Americans this summer, NASA's Curiosity rover is embarking on a road trip — but on Mars.

July 9, NASA released two new NASA Interim Directives which aim to implement planetary protection measures for the moon and Mars.

NASA unveils new rules to protect the moon and Mars from Earth germs

By Chelsea Gohd

NASA has unveiled new policies to protect the moon and Mars (and Earth) from contamination as human spaceflight advances.

uae hope mars probe

A Mars 'Hope': The UAE's 1st interplanetary spacecraft aims to make history at Red Planet

By Meghan Bartels

Next week, the United Arab Emirates will launch its first-ever interplanetary mission, a Mars orbiter that the nation hopes will inspire the region and advance Red Planet science.

"The Sirens of Mars" by Sarah Stewart Johnson.

'The Sirens of Mars' tells of the search for life on Mars

By Meghan Bartels

Studying Mars has been by turns tantalizing and heart-breaking, a constant dance as improving technology builds or dims hopes of finding life on our red neighbor.

"The Sirens of Mars" by Sarah Stewart Johnson.

Book excerpt: 'The Sirens of Mars' on early views of the Red Planet

By Sarah Stewart Johnson

For centuries, humans have looked to the bright, reddish dot moving across our skies and wondered about its secrets.

The burrowing heat probe aboard NASA's InSight Mars lander lies in a shallow pit beneath InSight's scoop, seen in this photo captured by the lander on June 20, 2020.

The 'mole' on Mars from NASA's InSight lander may be stuck again

By Mike Wall

The Martian mole is underground again, but it may still not be able to dig on its own.

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is prepared to be encapsulated in its Atlas V rocket payload fairing at NASA's Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 18, 2020.

It's the month of Mars! 3 Red Planet missions set to launch in July

By Mike Wall

Three missions are poised to launch toward the Red Planet this month, including NASA's life-hunting, sample-caching Perseverance rover.

An artist's depiction of a rocket carrying humans to Mars.

Astronauts bound for Mars should swing by Venus first, scientists say

By Rahul Rao

To get to Mars cheaper and faster to save time and open up new mission windows, scientists say there's an easy shortcut: fly by Venus on the way.

An engineer observes a test of the Mars Helicopter Delivery System at Lockheed Martin Space in Denver in April 2019.

The 1st-ever Mars helicopter will start flying next year. Here's how.

By Elizabeth Howell

NASA's Perseverance rover will have a special passenger when it alights inside Mars' Jezero Crater in February 2021 — the first helicopter ever to fly on another world.

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is encapsulated in its Atlas V rocket payload fairing at NASA's Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 18, 2020.

NASA delays launch of next Mars rover to no earlier than July 30

By Mike Wall

NASA has delayed the launch of its Mars rover Perseverance again, this time to no earlier than July 30, due to rocket preparation delays.

Antarctic Search for Meteorites 2014-15 expedition

Want to learn how to survive on Mars? Look to Antarctica.

By Meghan Bartels

One is blinding white and the other a dull, dusty red. But both are cold, barren worlds, difficult to reach and full of tantalizing scientific mysteries.

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is prepared to be encapsulated in its Atlas V rocket payload fairing at NASA's Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 18, 2020.

Launch of NASA's next Mars rover delayed again by 'contamination concern' on the ground

By Tariq Malik

The launch of NASA's next Mars rover has been delayed to no earlier than July 22 due to a contamination issue with ground support equipment.

Artist's illustration of NASA's Mars 2020 rover Perseverance exploring the Red Planet.

NASA's next Mars rover is just one month away from launch

By Mike Wall

The launch of NASA's next Mars rover, the life-hunting, sample-caching Perseverance, is just a month away.

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity snapped this selfie after drilling a hole at a rock feature called "Hutton" and making its way up to the Greenheugh Pediment, the rocky mound seen here behind the rover and to the left. This panorama combines 86 images taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera on Curiosity's robotic arm on Feb. 26, 2020, the 2,687th Martian day, or "sol," of the rover's mission on the Red Planet.

NASA needs your help teaching its Curiosity rover how to drive on Mars

By Elizabeth Howell

NASA is asking for your help to guide its Curiosity rover around sand traps, sharp rocks and other obstacles on the Red Planet.

An artist's depiction of the Mars helicopter Ingenuity separating from NASA's Perseverance rover on Mars.

NASA has built a helicopter to explore Mars and it's finally ready to launch

By Meghan Bartels

NASA is ready to take its first spin at flying a helicopter on another world as the agency's Mars helicopter, Ingenuity, prepares for launch in July.

Seen from below, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover bears a plaque to the right of its middle wheel. Featuring a snake-entwined rod to symbolize healing and medicine, it commemorates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and honors the perseverance of healthcare workers around the world.

NASA's next Mars rover carries tribute to healthcare workers fighting coronavirus

By Mike Wall

NASA's next Mars rover will bear to the Red Planet a tribute to brave healthcare workers fighting a pandemic here on Earth.

Another artist's concept showing NASA's Mars 2020 rover exploring Mars. 

Perseverance: NASA’s Mars 2020 rover

By Nola Taylor Redd

The Perseverance rover, the centerpiece of NASA's Mars 2020 mission, will pick up where Curiosity left off, searching for signs of past life, but with better technology.

Two images of the night sky were combined to show Earth and Venus as seen by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover on June 5, 2020, the mission's 2,784th Martian day, or sol. The planets appear as pinpoints of light owing to a combination of distance and dust in the air. Mars' Tower Butte is visible at bottom.

See Earth and Venus from Mars in amazing photos from NASA's Curiosity rover

By Elizabeth Howell

NASA's Curiosity rover took a break from assessing ancient Martian habitability to gaze up at the Red Planet sky — where it found Earth.

Artist's illustration of the European Space Agency's ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter detecting the green glow of oxygen in the Martian atmosphere. This emission, spotted on the dayside of Mars, is similar to the night glow seen around Earth’s atmosphere from space.

Weird green glow spotted in atmosphere of Mars

By Mike Wall

Europe's Trace Gas Orbiter spotted an emerald glow in Mars' wispy atmosphere, marking the first time the phenomenon has been spotted on a world beyond Earth.