Mars

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

Latest Updates

An image of the Mars surface taken by the Ingenuity helicopter's navigation camera during a flight testing out a new software system on Nov. 22, 2022.

Mars helicopter Ingenuity aces 1st flight after major software update

By Tereza Pultarova published 25 November 22

NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity has performed its shortest flight ever, the first after a major software update that will allow the chopper to land more safely and navigate over rugged terrain.

A still from "Good Night Oppy" showing Opportunity Mars rover sliding down a crater.

Mars rover documentary 'Good Night Oppy' now streaming on Prime Video

By Jeff Spry published 23 November 22

"Good Night Oppy" finally arrives on Amazon's Prime Video streaming service on Wednesday (Nov. 23), just in time for holiday viewing over the long Thanksgiving Day weekend.

a robotic arm in the foreground, a reddish brown rocky landscape in the background

NASA's Perseverance rover opens a window to Mars' watery past

By Briley Lewis published 23 November 22

The Perseverance rover is approaching its one-year anniversary since landing on Feb. 18, 2021 — one Mars year, that is.

NASA's Opportunity rover, as recreated by the artists at Industrial Light & Magic, stars in "Good Night Oppy," director Ryan White's new documentary streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

'Good Night Oppy' explores human side of robotic rover's life on Mars

By Robert Z. Pearlman published 23 November 22

Ryan White did not set out to make a tearjerker, yet audiences watching "Good Night Oppy" may want to have tissues ready. "Not a chance in hell did I think this would be as emotional," White said.

An artist's impression of an ancient Mars rich in water.

Mars' water may have come from ancient asteroid impacts

By Keith Cooper published 22 November 22

Isotopic evidence points to carbonaceous chondrite asteroids bringing enough water to Mars that it could have formed a global ocean some 1,000 feet deep.

view down at cracked, rocky surface, with one wheel visible at left of image

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover hunts tantalizing bedrock that could hide evidence of life

By Robert Lea published 22 November 22

Continuing its mission to search for signs of ancient life on Mars, NASA's Perseverance rover has reached Jezero Crater's Yori Pass.

one large red planet accompanied by two very small moons

Mars may be slowly ripping its largest moon apart

By Harry Baker published 21 November 22

A new study has revealed that the weird parallel grooves on the surface of Mars' largest moon Phobos could be a sign that the Red Planet's gravity is ripping the satellite apart.

NASA's LOFTID inflatable heat shield demonstrator sits on the deck of a recovery ship shortly after its splashdown on Nov. 10, 2022.

Boots on Mars: Artemis 1 launch and heat shield test take NASA closer

By Mike Wall published 18 November 22

NASA's Artemis 1 moon launch and LOFTID heat shield test successfully demonstrated hardware that could be key to landing astronauts on Mars.

A Mars Express image taken on May 29, 2019, showing a storm swirling to the right of the north pole ice cap.

Mars' clouds are strangely Earth-like, despite wildly different atmospheres

By Robert Lea published 17 November 22

Despite having radically different atmospheres, Mars and Earth seem to have similar cloud patterns, hinting that the features may form in much the same way.

boxy spacecraft against red cratered surface

Mars orbiter notches 1st sighting of simultaneous auroras with different causes

By Keith Cooper published 15 November 22

NASA's MAVEN mission spotted two different types of auroras glowing in ultraviolet light as charged particles riding the solar storm streamed into the Martian atmosphere.

Space photos: The most amazing images this week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia last updated 14 January 23

The Wolf Moon enchants people across the world, a comet visits Earth for the first time since the Stone Age and a Snoopy toy exits the NASA Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft. These are some of this week's top photos.

Watch the moon visit Mars in the sky Friday night (Nov. 11)

By Robert Lea published 11 November 22

The moon will visit the red planet Mars on Friday (Nov. 11), when the two objects make a close approach in the evening sky.

loftid heat demonstrator with earth in behind

NASA's inflatable flying saucer aces Mars heat shield reentry test

By Elizabeth Howell published 10 November 22

LOFTID soared into space and back again Thursday (Nov. 10), safely splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on a crucial test of aeroshell technology for eventual human Mars missions.

Sophia Walker, Alex Paxton-Beesley and Maya McNair in episode 7 of "Circuit Breakers," premiering Friday, Nov. 11, 2022 on Apple TV+.

Fly around a home on Mars in this exclusive clip from the sci-fi series 'Circuit Breakers' on Apple TV+

By Robert Z. Pearlman published 9 November 22

In this exclusive clip from the new Apple TV+ anthology series "Circuit Breakers," a girl and her family face an oncoming storm at their home on Mars.

The origins of Mars' crust might be surprisingly complex

By Stefanie Waldek published 5 November 22

New research indicates that certain areas of the Martian crust have a higher silica content than expected, upending the long-held theory that the crust is uniformly basaltic.