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Stories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society. 

Helene in color

Helene has two faces

Yes, it's yet another post on Helene! I keep on finding new stuff to post. This time it is a really cool montage assembled by Ian Regan.

Bereghinia Planitia, Venus

LPSC: Venus

Despite the fact that I began my career in science doing research on Magellan images of Venus, I've often avoided Venus sessions at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference because they've tended to be pointlessly contentious. But I decided to attend the one this year to see how things went.

Cassini's 3 March 2010 Helene flyby

Pointing at Helene

I posted already some neat images from Cassini's flyby of Helene last week, and commented on how most of the images from that encounter missed Helene entirely or only caught the moon at one edge of the camera field of view. Here's an example of one of those images.

Flight path for Mars3d Candor Chasma animation

Unbelievably spectacular flight through Candor Chasma

This is one of the things that came out during LPSC last week and all I could do at the time was Tweet it—so here it is in blog form: the most unbelievably spectacular 3D animation of a bit of Mars I've seen yet, produced by Adrian Lark.

Phobos closeup from Mars Express

Phobos has gravity!

Last week Mars Express had its closest-ever flyby of Mars' larger, inner moon Phobos.

Orientale Basin on the Moon

LPSC: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter results

A week later and I am finally getting to the mountains of notes I took on Moon-related talks I saw at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC) held in Houston last week.

Concepción crater

LPSC, Day 3: Opportunity, and what the heck is Marquette?

I wrote earlier about some results from Spirit reported at this year's Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Houston, Texas; here are the rest of my notes on rover-related talks, from Opportunity's site on the opposite side of Mars.

Solar system montage with eight planets

Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Parks for Winter, Opportunity Tastes Chocolate Hills

As winter put the freeze on in the southern hemisphere of the Red Planet, the Mars Exploration Rovers slowed down a bit, but continued throughout February to demonstrate the mettle that made them famous: Spirit successfully drove backwards, parked in place for the season, then continued working, as Opportunity roved through rock debris on a cruise around the rim of Concepcin Crater.

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