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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Emerges from Crater and Onto the Shoreline of What Once Was a Salty Sea
After nearly two months of study, Opportunity has emerged from her landing crater at Meridiani Planum and onto
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Too Finds Traces of Water
Four days after scientists announced that rocks examined by the rover Opportunity in Meridiani Planum were once soaked with water, Opportunity's twin Spirit made some headline news of its own. In a press conference this morning at the Jet Propulsion laboratory in Pasadena, Dr. Ray Arvidson, Deputy Principal Investigator for the rovers, announced that Spirit had discovered the telltale signs that some amount water had once been present in Gusev Crater as well.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Finds Evidence of Past Liquid Water
The Mars Exploration Rovers have sent home the first real prize of the mission - evidence of past liquid water on the Red Planet. Opportunity -- which landed five weeks ago inside a small crater near exposed bedrock -- has found evidence that Meridiani Planum was once
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Keeps on Truckin' to Bonneville and Opportunity Continues Study of Outcrop
Spirit and Opportunity continued their search for evidence of water at Gusev Crater and Meridiani Planum this week, and a lot of excited and smiling faces have been emanating from behind the scenes, in the mission rooms at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit To 'Trench' Laguna Hollow; Opportunity Uncovers Shiny Spherules, Takes on El Capitan
The rovers have been kicking up dirt and roving to new destinations this week, as they pick up the pace and take care of their geological business on Mars.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Breaks More Records; Opportunity Digs a Trench
Mars driving records are falling at Gusev Crater, as the rover Spirit continues its steady progress towards the nearby crater nicknamed
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Breaks Driving Record -- Again, and Meets the Stone Council
The Mars Exploration Rovers are really starting to 'show their stuff' on the Red Planet. Despite a couple of technological hiccups earlier in the week, the twin robot field geologists are getting down and dirty in the Martian soil.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Cruises to New Target, 'White Boat' Opportunity Uncovers Mystery Spheres
Both Mars rovers -- Spirit and Opportunity -- are roving on the Red Planet and doing exactly what they were programmed to do as robot field geologists, explore their surrounding areas.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: A Restored Spirit Studies Adirondack, 'Talks' to Mars Express
A fully restored Spirit got back to work late last week on Gusev Crater, using her rock abrasion tool for the first time to brush, then grind into Adirondack. And before her first day back was done, the rover returned more surprises to the science team in the flow of research data she sent home, and reestablished the
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Suffers Minor Set-Back
It's been another week unlike any other week on Mars.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Both Spirit and Opportunity Get to Work on Mars
Both Mars Exploration Rovers -- Spirit and Opportunity -- are getting to work studying the Martian landscapes in which they landed.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Rolls onto Surface of Meridiani Planum, Mars and Confirms Presence of Hematite
Opportunity rolled off her lander and onto the dark red Martian soil at Meridiani Planum early Saturday morning, at about 1:50 a.m., Pacific Standard Time, just one week after the robot field geologist arrived on the Red Planet.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Finds Martian 'Paydirt,' Rolls Onto Surface Spirit Makes A Comeback
Both Mars Exploration Rovers -- Spirit and Opportunity -- are down in the Martian dirt and getting to work.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Sends First Image Home Since Computer Glitch Shut Her Down Last Week
The first Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit took -- and successfully returned -- her first image since problems.
Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Spirit Continues Progress in 'Rehab;' Opportunity Returns "Phenomenal" Images Challenger Crew Remembered
While the first Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit, continues to make progress in 'rehab,' members of the science teams are marveling at the images Opportunity is sending home.
NASA Names Gusev Crater Hills After Apollo 1 Crew
NASA Headquarters issued a press release late yesterday announcing that the agency is memorializing the Apollo 1 crew -- Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee -- by naming the hills surrounding the first Mars Exploration Rover Spirit's landing site after the three astronauts.
Opportunity Scores "A 300-Million-Mile, Interplanetary Hole-In-One"
Although it did appear from the very first images returned that the second Mars Exploration Rover had landed inside a small crater when it arrived at Meridiani Planum last Saturday night, that belief was confirmed with further analysis yesterday.
Spirit is "In Recovery"
Spirit stopped transmitting good data last Wednesday, but never went silent. It continued communicating with the MER team and returning good information with which the team is now working.
The Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Lands in "Beautiful, Alien Place!"
Opportunity landed in Meridiani Planum on Mars last night at 9:05 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST) -- and fours hours later sent its first postcards home!
Mars Rover Spirit Upgraded from "Critical" to "Serious"
The specially formed Anomaly Team working overnight to unravel the mystery of what happened last Wednesday that caused the rover’s computer to fall into a reboot loop and stop functioning properly – had by this morning come up with a working hypothesis.