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December 30, 2004 Cassini Caps off 2004 With Flyby of Icy Moon IapetusNASA's Cassini spacecraft is set to cap off 2004 with an encounter of Saturn's ying-yang moon Iapetus (eye-APP-eh-tuss) on New Year's Eve. |
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December 29, 2004 JPL/Caltech Float Set to Launch on Rose Parade MissionA towering 50-foot robot from JPL and Caltech will thrill throngs of parade-goers on New Year's Day. |
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December 28, 2004 Cassini Mission Status ReportNASA's Cassini spacecraft successfully performed a getaway maneuver on Monday, Dec. 27, to keep it from following the European Space Agency's Huygens probe into the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan. |
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December 24, 2004 Cassini Mission Status ReportThe European Space Agency's Huygens probe successfully detached from NASA's Cassini orbiter today to begin a three-week journey to Saturn's moon Titan. |
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December 21, 2004 European Space Agency's Huygens Probe Set to Detach From Cassini OrbiterThe highlights of the first year of the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn can be broken into two chapters: first, the arrival of the Cassini orbiter at Saturn in June, and second, the release of the Huygens probe on Dec. 24, 2004, on a path toward Titan. |
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December 21, 2004 Aging Universe May Still be Spawning Massive GalaxiesNASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer has spotted what appear to be massive "baby" galaxies in our corner of the universe. Previously, astronomers thought the universe's birth rate had dramatically declined and only small galaxies were forming. |
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December 16, 2004 Cassini Shows Before And After Look At Saturn's Moon TitanCassini's second close flyby of Titan completes a 'before' and 'after' look at the fuzzy moon and provides the first direct evidence of changing weather patterns in the skies over Titan. |
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December 14, 2004 NASA'S Aura Satellite Sheds new Light On Air Quality and Ozone HoleNASA scientists announced the agency's Aura spacecraft is providing the first daily, direct global measurements of low-level ozone and many other pollutants affecting air quality. |
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December 14, 2004 NASA Selects Investigations for the Mars Science LaboratoryNASA has selected eight proposals to provide instrumentation and associated science investigations for the mobile Mars Science Laboratory rover, scheduled for launch in 2009. Proposals selected today were submitted to NASA in response to an announcement of opportunity released in April. |
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December 14, 2004 NASA Set to Launch First Comet Impact ProbeLaunch and flight teams are in final preparations for the planned Jan. 12, 2005, liftoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., of NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft. |
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December 13, 2004 Cassini Mission Status ReportThe Cassini spacecraft completed a successful rendezvous with Saturn's moon Titan today. |
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December 13, 2004 Mars Rovers Spot Water-Clue Mineral, Frost, CloudsScientists have identified a water-signature mineral called goethite in bedrock that the NASA's Mars rover Spirit examined in the "Columbia Hills," one of the mission's surest indicators yet for a wet history on Spirit's side of Mars. |
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December 9, 2004 Spitzer and Hubble Capture Evolving Planetary SystemsTwo of NASA's Great Observatories, the Spitzer Space Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope, have provided astronomers an unprecedented look at dusty planetary debris around stars the size of our Sun. |
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December 8, 2004 JPL Community Mourns Loss of Three ColleaguesLeadership of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory expressed their deep concern today after a vanpool accident that took the life of three riders and injured several others. |
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December 3, 2004 Cassini Captures Saturn Moon Red-HandedStealing is a crime on Earth, but at Saturn, apparently it is routine. The Cassini spacecraft has witnessed Saturn's moon Prometheus snatching particles from one of Saturn's rings. |
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December 2, 2004 NASA Study Links Wind and Current Changes to Indian Ocean WarmingA NASA study suggests changing winds and currents in the Indian Ocean during the 1990s contributed to the observed warming of the ocean during that period. |
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December 2, 2004 Reports Detail Rover Discoveries of Wet Martian HistoryThe most dramatic findings so far from NASA's twin Mars rovers -- telltale evidence for a wet and possibly habitable environment in the arid planet's past -- passed rigorous scientific scrutiny for publication in a major research journal. |
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November 23, 2004 Cassini Shows Grandeur of Two Saturn MoonsNew views of two of Saturn's moons, Titan and Tethys, represent the most detailed look at these moons to date and show a sharp contrast between them -- one is foggy and one is cratered. |
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November 11, 2004 Space Science and Medical Technology: To See or Not to SeeIn two free public lectures, Dr. Wolfgang Fink, JPL senior research scientist and assistant professor of ophthalmology and neurosurgery at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, will describe tools for early detection, diagnosis and prevention of eye disorders in space and on Earth. |
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November 11, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusOperators of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity have determined that a proposed route eastward out of "Endurance Crater" is not passable, so the rover will backtrack to leave the crater by a southward route, perhaps by retracing its entry path. |
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November 9, 2004 Spitzer Sees Ice and Warm Glows in Dark and Dusty PlacesTwo new results from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope released today are helping astronomers better understand how stars form out of thick clouds of gas and dust, and how the molecules in those clouds ultimately become planets. |
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November 9, 2004 Cassini Radar Sees Bright Flow-Like Feature on TitanA strikingly bright feature that is consistent with an active geology has been seen in one of Cassini's first radar images of Saturn's moon Titan. |
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November 8, 2004 Jet Propulsion Laboratory Honored by Scientific AmericanNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., has been named by Scientific American Magazine as a research leader within the 2004 Scientific American 50 - the magazine's prestigious annual list recognizing outstanding acts of leadership in science and technology. |
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November 5, 2004 Radar Image Shows Titan's Surface Live and in ColorSaturn's moon Titan shows a sharp contrast between its smooth and rough edges in a new false-color radar image. |
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November 4, 2004 Spirit Adds Clues About History of Rocks in Martian HillsAll the scientific tools on NASA's two Mars Exploration Rovers are still working well, a full 10 months after Spirit's dramatic landing. The ones on Spirit are adding fresh evidence about the history of layered bedrock in a hill the rover is climbing. |
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October 29, 2004 NASA's Mars Rovers Pass the 50,000-Picture MarkA view of the sundial-like calibration target on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit, with a bit of martian terrain in the background, is the 50,000th image from the twin rovers that have been exploring Mars since January. |
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October 29, 2004 Cassini's Radar Shows Titan's Young Active SurfaceThe first radar images of Saturn's moon Titan show a very complex geological surface that may be relatively young. |
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October 27, 2004 Cassini Peeks Below Cloud Shroud Around TitanEarly analysis of images and other data captured during last night's close flyby of Saturn's moon Titan |
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October 26, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Mission Status ReportThe Cassini spacecraft beamed back information and pictures tonight after successfully skimming the hazy atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan. |
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October 25, 2004 First Close Encounter of Saturn's Hazy Moon TitanLong hidden behind a thick veil of haze, Titan, the only known moon with an atmosphere, is ready for its close-up on Oct. 26, 2004. This visit by the Cassini spacecraft may settle intense speculation about whether this moon of Saturn harbors oceans of liquid methane and ethane beneath its coat of clouds. |
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October 21, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusA problem that affects the steering on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has recurred after disappearing for nearly two weeks. |
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October 21, 2004 Keck Team to Make Stars 'Disappear'The technological magicians at JPL and the Keck Observatory are a step closer to performing a vanishing act on a cosmic scale. |
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October 18, 2004 Deep Impact Arrives in Florida to Prepare for LaunchNASA's Deep Impact spacecraft has arrived in Florida to begin final preparations for a launch on Dec. 30, 2004. |
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October 18, 2004 Astronomers Discover Planet Building is Big MessPlanets are built over a long period of massive collisions between rocky bodies as big as mountain ranges, astronomers announced today. |
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October 13, 2004 Free Programs Will Preview NASA's Next Mars MissionTwo free public programs in Pasadena this week will introduce NASA's next Mars mission, a multipurpose orbiter under assembly for launch next August. |
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October 12, 2004 Newfound Star Cluster May Be Final Milky Way 'Fossil'Just when astronomers thought they might have dug up the last of our galaxy's "fossils," they've discovered a new one in the galactic equivalent of our own backyard. |
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October 7, 2004 Mars Rovers Probing Water History at Two SitesNASA's Spirit and Opportunity have been exploring Mars about three times as long as originally scheduled. The more they look, the more evidence of past liquid water on Mars these robots discover. Team members reported the new findings at a news briefing today. |
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October 6, 2004 NASA Approves Mission to Seek Nearest Stars, Brightest GalaxiesA new NASA mission will scan the entire sky in infrared light in search of nearby cool stars, planetary construction zones and the brightest galaxies in the universe. |
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October 6, 2004 Great Observatories May Unravel 400-Year-Old Supernova MysteryFour hundred years ago, sky watchers, including the famous astronomer Johannes Kepler, best known as the discoverer of the laws of planetary motion, were startled by the sudden appearance of a "new star" in the western sky, rivaling the brilliance of the nearby planets. |
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October 6, 2004 The History of Johannes KeplerFour centuries ago, an evening's entertainment was as simple as stepping out to gaze at the night sky. But among the world's many star watchers, one man stood apart. Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) was a mathematician and physicist who not only observed, but also sought to explain the celestial dance above. |
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October 5, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusEngineers on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover team are investigating possible causes and remedies for a problem affecting the steering on Spirit. |
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October 4, 2004 Earthquake Forecast Program Has Amazing Success RateA NASA-funded earthquake forecast program has an amazing track record. Published in 2002, the Rundle-Tiampo Forecast has accurately forecast the locations of 13 of California's 14 largest earthquakes this decade, including last week's tremors. |
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October 4, 2004 New JPL Chief Engineer SelectedNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has appointed Brian Muirhead as Chief Engineer. Muirhead had previously served as chief engineer for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, and was flight system manager and project manager of NASA's Mars Pathfinder mission, which successfully landed on the red planet and operated the Sojourner rover in 1997. |
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September 30, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportThe Genesis team is preparing to ship its samples of the Sun from the mission's temporary cleanroom at the U.S. Army Proving Ground, Dugway, Utah, to NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. |
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September 29, 2004 NASA Recruits Community Outreach Volunteers for 2005Calling all space buffs! NASA's Solar System Ambassadors program is recruiting more volunteers to spread the marvel of space science and exploration across the nation. |
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September 29, 2004 JPL Software Links Pediatric Doctors With New ResearchConjoined twins from Guatemala and the Philippines were recently separated after marathon surgeries in the United States, since their small communities lacked the quality medical care for the delicate procedure. |
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September 28, 2004 Large Asteroid Will Zoom Safely Past Earth WednesdayA mountain-sized asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth at 6:35 a.m. Pacific Time (9:35 a.m. Eastern Time) tomorrow. |
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September 27, 2004 Mars Orbiter Sees Rover Tracks Among Thousands of New ImagesNASA's Mars Global Surveyor, starting its third mission extension this week after seven years of orbiting Mars, is using an innovative technique to capture pictures even sharper than most of the more than 170,000 it has already produced. |
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September 23, 2004 Scientists Report Increased Thinning of West Antarctic GlaciersGlaciers in West Antarctica are shrinking at a rate substantially higher than was observed in the 1990s. They are losing 60 percent more ice into the Amundsen Sea than they accumulate from inland snowfall. |
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September 23, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportThe Genesis team has shipped its first scientific sample from the mission's specially constructed cleanroom at the U.S. Army Proving Ground in Dugway, Utah. The sample, containing what are known as "lid foils," was attached to the interior lid of the Genesis sample return capsule. |
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September 21, 2004 Rover Missions Renewed as Mars Emerges from Behind SunAs NASA's Spirit and Opportunity rovers resumed reliable contact with Earth, after a period when Mars passed nearly behind the Sun, the space agency extended funding for an additional six months of rover operations, as long as they keep working. |
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September 21, 2004 Glaciers Surge When Ice Shelf Breaks UpSince 2002, when the Larsen B ice shelf broke away from the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, scientists have witnessed profound increases in the flow of nearby glaciers into the Weddell Sea. These observations were made possible through NASA, Canadian and European satellite data. |
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September 20, 2004 NASA Selects Contractor for First Prometheus Mission to JupiterNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif., selected Northrop Grumman Space Technology, Redondo Beach, Calif., as the contractor for co-designing the proposed Prometheus Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) spacecraft. The contract award is for approximately $400 million, covering work through mid-2008. |
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September 17, 2004 Coming Down From the CloudsDr. Michelle Santee studies clouds - in particular, polar stratospheric clouds, which have an important role in the development of the "ozone hole" over Antarctica. |
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September 16, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportGenesis team scientists and engineers continue their work on the mission's sample return canister in a specially constructed clean room at the U.S. Army Proving Ground in Dugway, Utah. |
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September 16, 2004 Strings of Shadowy Rings Drape SaturnSaturn's ring shadows appear wrapped in a harmonious symphony with the planet in this color view from the Cassini spacecraft. |
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September 14, 2004 Frances, Ivan Contribute to Hurricane StudiesSeen through the eyes of the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer aboard NASA's Terra satellite, the menacing clouds of Hurricanes Frances and Ivan provide a wealth of information that can help improve hurricane forecasts. |
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September 10, 2004 Genesis Scientists Bouncing Back from Hard LandingScientists who conducted the preliminary assessment of the Genesis canister are encouraged by what they see. They believe it may be possible to achieve the most important portions of their science objectives. |
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September 9, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportGenesis team specialists are beginning the process of conducting inventory of the contents of the craft's science canister. |
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September 9, 2004 NASA's Grace Gravity Mission Weighs in on Earth's Changing ClimateFor the first time, scientists have demonstrated that precise measurements of Earth's changing gravity field can effectively monitor changes in the planet's climate and weather. |
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September 9, 2004 Cassini Discovers Ring and One, Possibly Two, Objects at SaturnScientists examining Saturn's contorted F ring, which has baffled them since its discovery, have found one small body, possibly two, orbiting in the F ring region, and a ring of material associated with Saturn's moon Atlas. |
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September 8, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportThe science canister from the Genesis mission was moved into the cleanroom at the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground in Utah early Wednesday evening. |
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September 8, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportThe science canister from the Genesis spacecraft has been transported by helicopter from its impact site at the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground in Utah to a holding area next to a specially constructed clean room on the Army base. |
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September 8, 2004 Genesis Mission Status ReportThe Genesis sample return capsule entered Earth's atmosphere at 9:52:47 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time and entered the preplanned entry ellipse in the Utah Test and Training Range as predicted. However, the Genesis capsule, as a result of its parachute not deploying, impacted the ground at a speed of 311 kilometers per hour (193 miles per hour). |
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September 7, 2004 Spitzer Arrives at Scene of Galactic CollisionNASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has set its infrared sight on a major galactic collision and witnessed not death, but a teeming nest of life. |
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September 7, 2004 NASA a 'Go' for Midair Capture of Samples from the SunNASA's Genesis spacecraft crossed the orbit of the Moon early Monday, Sept. 6, on its way to the mission's dramatic finale over the skies of west-central Utah tomorrow. Genesis, bringing back samples of the solar wind, is NASA's first sample return mission since Apollo 17 returned the last of America's lunar samples to Earth in December 1972. |
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September 3, 2004 A Little Glitz Goes a Long Way for NASA's GenesisIt seems everyone benefits from a little "bling bling" now and then. Hollywood icons use six-carat jewels to decorate themselves; eastern ayurvedic doctors use precious gems to make medicine; and scientists on NASA's Genesis mission, due to return Sept. 8, use sapphire, silicon, gold and diamond to collect raw solar wind particles in outer space. |
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September 2, 2004 JPL Engineer Selected as Young InnovatorDr. Ayanna Howard, an electrical engineer at JPL, has been selected to participate in the National Academy of Engineering's annual engineering symposium. |
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September 2, 2004 Cassini Reveals Saturn's Cool RingsThe Cassini spacecraft has taken the most detailed temperature measurements to date of Saturn's rings. |
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September 1, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has resumed using its rock abrasion tool after a pebble fell out that had jammed the tool's rotors two weeks ago. |
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August 31, 2004 Scientists Discover First of a New Class of Extrasolar PlanetsAstronomers announced today the first discovery of a new class of planets beyond our solar system about 10 to 20 times the size of Earth - far smaller than any previously detected. |
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August 25, 2004 Mars Odyssey Begins Overtime After Successful MissionNASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter begins working overtime today after completing a prime mission that discovered vast supplies of frozen water, ran a safety check for future astronauts, and mapped surface textures and minerals all over Mars, among other feats. |
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August 23, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Mission Status ReportThe Cassini spacecraft successfully completed a 51-minute engine burn that will raise its next closest approach distance to Saturn by nearly 300,000 kilometers (186,000 miles). |
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August 19, 2004 NASA Mission Returns with a Piece of the SunIn a dramatic ending that marks a beginning in scientific research, NASA's Genesis spacecraft is set to swing by Earth and jettison a sample return capsule filled with particles of the Sun that may ultimately tell us more about the genesis of our solar system. |
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August 19, 2004 Local High School Student Sets Sights On SaturnDuring the summer months, most high school seniors would welcome the chance to sleep late or go to the beach, but Jessica Luttkus spent her time planning the perfect photo shoot of Saturn. |
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August 18, 2004 Scientists Study Desert Air to Understand Weather and ClimateNASA, Naval Research Laboratory and Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientists have assembled in the Arabian Desert to study tiny airborne particles called aerosols and their effect on weather and climate. |
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August 18, 2004 Free Talks Focus on Link Between Carbon Dioxide and ClimateCarbon dioxide is the focus of a pair of free, public lectures to be held at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena on Thursday, Aug. 19, and at Pasadena City College on Friday, Aug. 20. |
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August 18, 2004 Bedrock in Mars' Gusev Crater Hints at Watery PastNow that NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is finally examining bedrock in the "Columbia Hills," it is finding evidence that water thoroughly altered some rocks in Mars' Gusev Crater. |
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August 16, 2004 Out From the Shadows: Two New Saturnian MoonsWith eyes sharper than any that have peered at Saturn before, the Cassini spacecraft has uncovered two moons, which may be the smallest bodies so far seen around the ringed planet. |
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August 13, 2004 Scientists Discover Ganymede has a Lumpy InteriorScientists have discovered irregular lumps beneath the icy surface of Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymede. |
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August 12, 2004 Mars Software Honored by NASANASA has selected a data visualization and simulation software package used by Mars rovers and landers, and a software package that can be used in aerospace and industrial flow fluid applications, as the "best of the best" software developed by the agency this year. |
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August 11, 2004 Trajectory Maneuver Brings Spacecraft Closer to HomeThirty days before its historic return to Earth with NASA's first samples from space since the Apollo missions, the Genesis spacecraft successfully completed its twentieth trajectory maneuver. |
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August 10, 2004 Relays from Mars Show International Interplanetary NetworkingOne of NASA's Mars rovers has sent pictures relayed by the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter for the first time, demonstrating that the orbiter could serve as a communications link if needed. |
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August 9, 2004 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission StatusWith one very busy year remaining before launch, the team preparing NASA's next mission to Mars has begun integrating and testing the spacecraft's versatile payload. |
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August 9, 2004 Dying Star Goes Out With a RingA new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the shimmering embers of a dying star, and in their midst a mysterious doughnut-shaped ring. |
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August 6, 2004 Planet Survey: Knocking on Heaven's DoorThe Milky Way is a big, diverse neighborhood. And if you're hoping to find Earthlike planets that may harbor life, you'll need to figure out a way to narrow the search. |
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August 5, 2004 Rocks Tell Stories in Reports of Spirit's First 90 Martian DaysScientific findings from the NASA rover Spirit's first three months on Mars will be published Friday, marking the start of a flood of peer-reviewed discoveries in scientific journals from the continuing two-rover adventure. |
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August 5, 2004 Saturn's Shadow and Titan's Glow Shed Light on a Complex SystemThe Cassini spacecraft, which began its tour of the Saturn system just over a month ago, has detected lightning and a new radiation belt at Saturn, and a glow around the planet's largest moon, Titan. |
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August 4, 2004 Aura Post-launch Status ReportActivation of the Aura spacecraft, launched July 15, is continuing, with the mission going very well so far. |
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August 4, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's Spirit rover has climbed higher into rocky hills on Mars, and its twin, Opportunity, has descended deeper into a crater, but both rovers, for the time being, are operating with some restrictions while team members diagnose unexpected behavior. |
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August 3, 2004 More Data from Mars Rover Spirit's First Month Now OnlineMillions of people have viewed pictures from NASA's Spirit on the Mars rovers home page and other Internet sites. Beginning today, a more complete set of science data from Spirit's first 30 martian days is posted on a site primarily for scientists and technical researchers, but also available to anyone who's interested. |
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August 2, 2004 Scientists’ Showdown with Soil Moisture at the O.K. CorralTombstone, Ariz., is a dusty place known for Wyatt Earp's famous 1881 "Shootout at the O.K. Corral." This year, from August 2 to 27, it will be known as the place where scientists from NASA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other institutions gather and study soil moisture to improve weather forecasts and the ability to interpret satellite data. |
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July 30, 2004 Keeping Current With Ocean CurrentsImagine a place where the roads change constantly and last month's map may be completely out of date. That's the ocean. |
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July 30, 2004 Notes from the GalaxiesChris Martin is a physicist. It might have been otherwise. As a life passion, music has always been a close second. Now, as principal investigator for the Galaxy Evolution Explorer project which studies the universe in ultraviolet light, Martin is a scientist and manager by day, classical pianist by night. |
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July 29, 2004 Titan's Purple Haze Points to a Fuzzy PastEncircled in purple stratospheric haze, Saturn's largest moon, Titan, appears as a softly glowing sphere in this colorized image taken on July 3, 2004, one day after Cassini's first flyby of that moon. |
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July 29, 2004 NASA Selects Future Mission Concepts for StudyNASA has selected nine studies, including one from JPL, to investigate new ideas for future mission concepts within its Astronomical Search for Origins Program. |
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July 22, 2004 Saturn's Rings Offer a Fresco of ColorWith shimmering pinks, hues of gray and a hint of brown, a newly released image of Saturn's rings resembles a fresco where nature is the painter. |
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July 20, 2004 Apollo 11 Experiment Still Going Strong after 35 YearsIt was the summer of '69. Director John Schlesinger's "Midnight Cowboy" had won the Oscar for Best Picture; the Rolling Stones' newly released "Honky Tonk Women" was climbing the charts; 400,000 people were gearing up to attend Woodstock…and America landed on the Moon, making "one giant leap for mankind." |
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July 16, 2004 NASA's Mars Rovers Roll Into Martian WinterAs winter approaches on Mars, NASA's Opportunity rover continues to inch deeper into the stadium-sized crater dubbed "Endurance." On the other side of the planet, the Spirit rover found an intriguing patch of rock outcrop while preparing to climb up the "Columbia Hills" backward. |
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July 15, 2004 NASA Infrared Camera Helps Surgeons Map Brain TumorsUsing an infrared video camera developed by researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., surgeons are testing thermal imaging and image processing to see if they can create useful maps of brain tumors. |
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July 15, 2004 Cassini Exposes Saturn's Two-Face MoonThe moon with the split personality, Iapetus, presents a perplexing appearance in the latest images snapped by the Cassini spacecraft. |
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July 15, 2004 Aura Spacecraft Launched to Better Understand the Air We BreatheAura, a mission dedicated to the health of Earth's atmosphere, successfully launched today from tVandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket. |
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July 14, 2004 From the FieldTake a group of strangers, put them in a harsh environment, and give them a challenging mission to accomplish -- scientists who do field research have much more experience with this than reality television producers ever will. |
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July 12, 2004 Saturn's Majestic Rings Are the Topic of Free LecturesTwo free public programs in Pasadena this week will present the dramatic story of Saturn, its majestic rings and dozens of moons. |
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July 12, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Mission Status ReportThe Cassini spacecraft emerged from behind the Sun today after being in solar conjunction since July 5. |
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July 9, 2004 At the Edge of an Alien World: Cassini Arrives at SaturnWhen the Cassini spacecraft launched into space nearly seven years ago, its destination - Saturn - appeared as a speck in a sea of stars. More than a billion miles later, Cassini has at last arrived at the ringed planet and discovered a dynamic world full of surprises. |
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July 3, 2004 Cassini Provides New Views of Titan, Saturn's Largest MoonThe Cassini spacecraft has revealed surface details of Saturn's moon Titan and imaged a huge cloud of gas surrounding the planet-sized moon. |
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July 2, 2004 Cassini Exposes Puzzles About Ingredients in Saturn's RingsJust two days after the Cassini spacecraft entered Saturn orbit, preliminary science results are already beginning to show a complex and fascinating planetary system. |
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July 1, 2004 Fresh Cassini Pictures Show Majesty of Saturn's RingsThe first pictures taken by the Cassini spacecraft after it began orbiting Saturn show breathtaking detail of Saturn's rings, and other science measurements reveal that Saturn's magnetic field pulsed in size as Cassini approached the planet. |
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June 30, 2004 Cassini Spacecraft Arrives at SaturnThe international Cassini-Huygens mission has successfully entered orbit around Saturn. |
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June 30, 2004 Cassini Set to Ring Saturn TodayAfter nearly seven years of asking, "Are we there yet?," the Cassini-Huygens mission is poised to enter Saturn’s orbit this evening. |
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June 29, 2004 Cassini Spacecraft At Saturn's DoorstepSaturn is now a day away for the Cassini spacecraft, a seasoned traveler that began its journey nearly seven years ago. |
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June 28, 2004 Seeing Double: Spitzer Captures Our Galaxy's TwinWhat would our Milky Way galaxy look like if we could travel outside it and snap a picture? It might look a lot like a new image by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope of a spiral galaxy called NGC 7331 - a virtual twin of our Milky Way. |
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June 28, 2004 Scientists Find That Saturn's Rotation Period is a PuzzleOn approach to Saturn, data obtained by the Cassini spacecraft are already posing a puzzling question: How long is the day on Saturn? |
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June 25, 2004 New Software on NASA Spacecraft Monitors Active VolcanoSoftware on a NASA spacecraft recently made a scientific observation on its own without human interaction. |
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June 25, 2004 Getting Closer to TitanIrregular bright and dark regions of yet unidentified composition and character are becoming increasingly visible on Titan’s surface as Cassini approaches its scheduled first flyby of Saturn’s largest moon on July 2, 2004. |
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June 25, 2004 Mars Rover Surprises Continue; Spirit, Too, Finds HematiteOn challenging slopes that NASA's Mars rovers began exploring this month, both Spirit and Opportunity have found new surprises for the folks back home. |
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June 25, 2004 An 'Alien Earth' in Saturn's BackyardWhen the Cassini mission's Huygens probe plunges through the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan, it will provide a glimpse behind the veil of what many astronomers consider the most Earthlike body in our solar system. |
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June 23, 2004 Cassini Opens a Cosmic Time CapsuleLike a woolly mammoth trapped in Arctic ice, Saturn's small moon Phoebe may be a frozen artifact of a bygone era, some four billion years ago. |
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June 17, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Mission Status ReportAfter completing a successful trajectory correction maneuver on Wednesday, the Cassini spacecraft is now on its final approach to Saturn. |
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June 17, 2004 NASA Data Offer a Safari into Vast African TopographyNewly released topographic data from NASA and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency provide 21st century explorers new ways to traverse the wonders of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and Madagascar. |
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June 17, 2004 NASA Spacecraft Reveals Surprising Anatomy of a CometFindings from a historic encounter between NASA's Stardust spacecraft and a comet have revealed a much stranger world than previously believed. |
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June 15, 2004 Mars Rovers Going the Extra MileNASA's Mars rovers are delighting scientists with their extra credit assignments. Both rovers successfully completed their primary three-month missions in April. |
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June 14, 2004 Erickson Takes Rover Reins as Cook Joins 2009 MissionAt NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., James K. Erickson becomes project manager for the Mars Exploration Rover Project today as his predecessor, Richard A. Cook, switches to the development of an even more capable Mars rover for launch in 2009. |
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June 14, 2004 Phoebe's Surface Reveals Clues to Its OriginImages collected during Cassini's close flyby of Saturn's moon, Phoebe, have yielded strong evidence that the tiny object may contain ice-rich material, overlain with a thin layer of darker material perhaps 300 to 500 meters (980 to 1,600 feet) thick. |
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June 12, 2004 Cassini's Flyby of Phoebe Shows a Moon With a Battered PastFirst images from the Cassini flyby of Phoebe reveal it to be a scarred, cratered outpost with a very old surface and a mysterious past, and a great deal of variation in surface brightness across its surface. |
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June 12, 2004 Cassini Makes Close Observations of PhoebeWith its flyby of Phoebe, the Cassini spacecraft has completed the first satellite flyby in its four-year tour of the Saturn system. |
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June 9, 2004 Cassini Spacecraft Near First Stop in Historic Saturn TourThe most complex interplanetary mission ever launched is about to meet one of the solar system's enigmatic moons. Cassini will fly by Saturn's largest outer moon, Phoebe, on Friday, June 11. |
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June 8, 2004 Mars Rovers Continue Unique Exploration of MarsNASA's Mars Opportunity rover began its latest adventure today inside the martian crater informally called Endurance. Opportunity will roll in with all six wheels, then back out to the rim to check traction by looking at its own track marks. |
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June 4, 2004 Mars Rovers Continue Unique Exploration of MarsNASA has decided the potential science value gained by sending Opportunity into a martian impact crater likely outweighs the risk of the intrepid explorer not being able to get back out. |
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June 4, 2004 NASA's New Satellite Takes on Global Climate ChangeAlthough there have been satellites measuring Earth's atmosphere since the 1970's, most have been designed for weather forecasting. Climate studies, which require the detection of subtle trends and changes that can take years to appear, require a new generation of spaceborne instruments. |
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June 3, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Will Unlock Saturn's SecretsThe international Cassini-Huygens mission is poised to begin an extensive tour of Saturn, its majestic rings and 31 known moons. |
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June 2, 2004 Rovers Examining Hills and Crater in Bonus-Time MissionMore than a month into bonus time after a successful primary mission on Mars, NASA's Spirit rover has sighted possibly layered rock in hills just ahead, while twin Opportunity has extended its arm to pockmarked stones on a crater rim to gather clues of a watery past. |
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June 1, 2004 Spitzer Spies Parallelogram-Shaped Galactic MealPeering into the "gut" of the galaxy Centaurus A, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has captured in unprecedented detail this massive galaxy's last big meal: a spiral galaxy twisted into a parallelogram-shaped structure of dust. |
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June 1, 2004 Spitzer Leads NASA's Great Observatories to Uncover Black Holes, Other Hidden ObjectsAstronomers unveiled the deepest images from NASA's new Spitzer Space Telescope today and announced the detection of distant objects -- including several supermassive black holes -- that are nearly invisible in even the deepest images from telescopes operating at other wavelengths. |
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June 1, 2004 Spitzer Spies Parallelogram-Shaped Galactic MealPeering into the "gut" of the galaxy Centaurus A, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has captured in unprecedented detail this massive galaxy's last big meal: a spiral galaxy twisted into a parallelogram-shaped structure of dust. |
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May 31, 2004 Spitzer Space Telescope Sets Infrared Eyes on Dark MatterTen years ago, a group of astronomers set out to find invisible, or dark, matter in the outer fringes of our galaxy. |
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May 28, 2004 Cassini-Huygens Mission Status ReportThe Cassini spacecraft successfully performed a critical six- minute trajectory correction maneuver May 27 to put it on course with its first encounter, Saturn's outermost moon Phoebe, set for June 11. |
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May 27, 2004 Raw Ingredients for Life Detected in Planetary Construction ZonesNASA has announced new findings from the Spitzer Space Telescope, including the discovery of significant amounts of icy organic materials sprinkled throughout several "planetary construction zones," or dusty planet-forming discs, which circle infant stars. |
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May 26, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's solar-powered Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is beginning on Thursday what controllers expect to be frequent use of an overnight "deep sleep" mode to stretch the robot's power supply. |
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May 26, 2004 Saturn Seen From Far and NearAs Saturn grows closer through the eyes of the Cassini spacecraft, which is hurtling toward a rendezvous with the ringed world on June 30 (July 1, Universal Time), both Cassini and the Earth-orbiting Hubble Space Telescope snapped spectacular pictures of the planet and its magnificent rings. |
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May 26, 2004 NASA Releases Mission Requirements for Proposed Jupiter MissionNASA has issued its mission design requirements to three industry teams for a proposed mission to Jupiter and its three icy moons. |
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May 18, 2004 Programs Will Share Excitement of Mars RoversTwo free public programs in Pasadena this week will present the dramatic story of NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers. |
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May 17, 2004 NASA Plans to Put an Aura Around the EarthOn June 19, NASA will launch Aura, a next generation Earth- observing satellite. Aura will supply the best information yet about the health of Earth's atmosphere. |
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May 17, 2004 Mars Rover Inspects Stone Ejected From CraterNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has begun sampling rocks blasted out from a stadium-sized impact crater the rover is circling, and the very first one may extend our understanding about the region's wet past. |
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May 11, 2004 NASA Spitzer Shares The WealthLike a philanthropist donating a prized collection to a museum, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has opened a virtual vault rich with scientific data. |
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May 10, 2004 Two Architectures Chosen for Terrestrial Planet FinderIncluded in the nation's new vision for space is a plan for NASA to "conduct advanced telescope searches for Earth-like planets and habitable environments around other stars." |
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May 6, 2004 Mars Rover Arrival at Deeper Crater Provides a Tempting EyefulScientists and engineers celebrated when they saw the first pictures NASA's Opportunity sent from the rim of a stadium- sized crater that the rover reached after a six-week trek across martian flatlands. |
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May 5, 2004 NASA Genesis Spacecraft on Final Lap Toward HomeNASA's Genesis spacecraft flew past Earth on Saturday in a loop that puts it on track for home - and a dramatic mid-air recovery Sept. 8. |
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May 5, 2004 NASA Ambassadors 2004, Now Coming to a Forum Near YouWhile two rovers roam Mars and the Cassini spacecraft nears Saturn, NASA's Solar System Ambassadors find themselves busier than ever this year, leading events across the nation in malls, classrooms and on the radio to share the wonders of space exploration with the public. |
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May 4, 2004 JPL to Hold Symposium for Small Business in Nation's CapitalNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., will host the 8th annual Space Science Symposium for Small Business on June 10, 2004, at the Hamilton Crowne Plaza in Washington, D.C. |
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April 28, 2004 Published Paper Probes Pulsar PairThe only known gravitationally bound pair of pulsars -- extremely dense, spinning stars that beam radio waves -- may be pirouetting around each other in an intricate dance. |
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April 28, 2004 Mars Rovers Finish Primary Mission and Roll OnwardBoth of NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers have completed their originally planned mission and are tackling extra-credit assignments. |
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April 27, 2004 Proof of New State of Matter Is in the JellyIn the community of very tiny particles that make up all matter in the universe, there are two main citizens: bosons and fermions. |
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April 26, 2004 JPL Open House Takes Visitors to the Planets and BeyondNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., will hold an open house on Sat. and Sun., May 15 and 16, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., taking visitors on a virtual ride through the solar system with this year's theme, "The Spirit of Exploration." |
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April 26, 2004 Black Magic or a Bag of Tricks?In his office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Optics Engineer Larry Scherr sits before a buzzing computer, sketching geometrical shapes on a sheet of graph paper. |
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April 23, 2004 Arctic Ozone Loss More Sensitive to Climate Change Than ThoughtA cooperative study involving NASA scientists quantifies, for the first time, the relationship between Arctic ozone loss and changes in the temperature of Earth's stratosphere. |
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April 22, 2004 NASA Arctic Sea Ice Study May Stir Up Climate ModelsContrary to historical observations, sea ice in the high Arctic undergoes very small, back and forth movements twice a day, even in the dead of winter. |
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April 16, 2004 Virtual Visit: Dishes in the DesertGet a little closer to space exploration -- and the Mojave Desert -- with our new virtual tour of NASA's Deep Space Network at Goldstone, Calif. Use your computer mouse to see 360-panoramic views of the huge dishes that serve as one of three vital communications links between spacecraft and the Earth-bound teams that command them. |
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April 15, 2004 Mars Rover Finds Rock Resembling Meteorites That Fell to EarthNASA's Opportunity rover has examined an odd volcanic rock on the plains of Mars' Meridiani Planum region with a composition unlike anything seen on Mars before, but scientists have found similarities to meteorites that fell to Earth. |
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April 15, 2004 Cosmic Magnifying Glass: Distant Star Reveals PlanetLike Sherlock Holmes holding a magnifying glass to unveil hidden clues, modern day astronomers used cosmic magnifying effects to reveal a planet orbiting a distant star. |
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April 13, 2004 Invisible Giants Exposed in New Spitzer ImageHidden behind a curtain of dusty darkness lurks one of the most violent pockets of star birth in our galaxy. |
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April 8, 2004 Two Storms Caught in the Act on SaturnThree months before Saturn arrival, the Cassini spacecraft has observed two storms in the act of merging into one larger storm. This is only the second time this phenomenon has been observed on the ringed planet. |
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April 8, 2004 NASA Extends Mars Rovers' MissionNASA has approved an extended mission for the Mars Exploration Rovers, handing them up to five months of overtime assignments as they finish their three-month prime mission. |
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April 5, 2004 NASA'S Aura Satellite Delivered to Launch SiteNASA's Aura spacecraft, the latest in the Earth Observing System series, has arrived at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., to begin launch preparations. |
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April 5, 2004 NASA Spacecraft Locks the Vault on its Sapphire, DiamondSince October 2001 NASA's Genesis spacecraft has exposed specially designed collector arrays of sapphire, silicon, gold and diamond to the Sun's solar wind. |
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April 5, 2004 NASA Radar Aids High-Tech DigsHistory can be hard to find. A forgotten letter molders in an attic. An ancient temple hides beneath jungle greenery. Even knowing that something is there doesn't necessarily make it easier to find - the classic needle in the haystack. |
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April 1, 2004 Spirit Finds Multi-Layer Hints of Past Water at Mars' Gusev SiteClues from a wind-scalloped volcanic rock on Mars investigated by NASA's Spirit rover suggest repeated possible exposures to water inside Gusev Crater, scientists said Thursday. |
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April 1, 2004 Here Comes the SunLittle did the Beatles know their metaphor would be taken literally one day. |
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March 31, 2004 NASA's Deep Space Network Celebrates 40 Years of Service"Station 14 - this is Stardust. We have a command load to send to the spacecraft. Can we verify your command system?" |
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March 26, 2004 New Phase of Exploration Beginning for Mars RoversNASA's Spirit will begin trekking toward hills on its eastern horizon in the next few days, entering a new phase of the rover's exploration of Mars just before its prime three-month mission ends and its extended mission begins, rover team members said today. |
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March 25, 2004 Rover and TrackThe engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, home of some of the best six-wheeled exo-atmospheric off-roaders anywhere, have really done it this time. |
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March 23, 2004 Standing Body of Water Left Its Mark in Mars RocksNASA's Opportunity rover has demonstrated some rocks on Mars probably formed as deposits at the bottom of a body of gently flowing saltwater. |
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March 19, 2004 'Fab Five' Make Rare Appearance in Night SkyLike a busy urban family, planets rarely get together all at once. Later this month, however, the five so-called naked-eye planets - Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn - will reunite in the night sky, giving spectators a unique chance to see Earth's closest companions in one easy sitting. |
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March 18, 2004 Mineral in Mars 'Berries' Adds to Water StoryA major ingredient in small mineral spheres analyzed by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity furthers understanding of past water at Opportunity's landing site and points to a way of determining whether the vast plains surrounding the site also have a wet history. |
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March 17, 2004 Webcast Links Venus Event and Planet-HuntingStudents, teachers and others are invited to join as NASA scientists preview a rare astronomical event involving Venus and the Sun during a live webcast. |
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March 16, 2004 William H. Pickering, Former Director of JPL, DiesDr. William H. Pickering, a central figure in the U.S. space race and former director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., from 1954 to 1976, has died. |
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March 16, 2004 Dr. Jorge Vazquez, OceanographerWhen a friend asked Jorge Vazquez to speak eight years ago to a group of high school students about his job and Earth science, the JPL oceanographer reluctantly said yes. |
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March 15, 2004 Most Distant Object in Solar System DiscoveredNASA-funded researchers have discovered the most distant object orbiting Earth's Sun. |
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March 11, 2004 Spirit Looks Down Into Crater After Reaching RimNASA's Spirit has begun looking down into a crater it has been approaching for several weeks, providing a view of what's below the surrounding surface. |
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March 11, 2004 NASA Satellite Finds Something Fishy About Santa Ana WindsSouthern California's legendary Santa Ana winds wreak havoc every year, creating hot, dry conditions and fire hazards. Despite their often-destructive nature, a study of the "Devil Winds," conducted using data from NASA's Quick Scatterometer (Quikscat) spacecraft and its SeaWinds instrument shows the winds have some positive benefits. |
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March 9, 2004 Slip Sliding AwayOn February 9, the wake up song for Opportunity was “Slip Sliding Away” by Simon and Garfunkel in honor of the experience the prior day when Opportunity first tried to scoot up the crater slope at Meridiani Planum. |
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March 8, 2004 NASA Rovers Watching Solar Eclipses by Mars MoonsNASA's Mars Exploration Rovers have become eclipse watchers. |
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March 8, 2004 NASA Creates Portrait of Life and Death in the UniverseIn a small nearby galaxy lies a luminous cloud of gas and dust, called a nebula, which houses a family of newborn stars. |
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March 8, 2004 Getting Down to Earth on MarsWhat can scientists learn about Mars by studying Earth? How do the ocean planet and the red planet differ, and how are they alike? These are some of the questions posed by students during a recent field trip to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. |
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March 5, 2004 Volcanic Rock in Mars' Gusev Crater Hints at Past WaterNASA's Spirit has found hints of a water history in a rock at Mars' Gusev Crater, but it is a very different type of rock than those in which NASA's Opportunity found clues to a wet past on the opposite side of the planet. |
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March 5, 2004 Sheddings from Opportunity Lead Rover Fans on a "Bunny" ChaseLike a rabbit in a hat, the identity of an oddity that looks like "bunny ears" in a picture from Mars has eluded the science and engineering teams. |
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March 3, 2004 Tumbleweed Rover Goes on a Roll at South PoleA balloon-shaped robot explorer that one day could search for evidence that water existed on other planets has survived some of the most trying conditions on planet Earth during a 70-kilometer (40-mile), wind-driven trek across Antarctica. |
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March 3, 2004 NASA Embarks on a Sweeping Airborne ExpeditionAn international team of scientists from NASA and other research institutions embarked on a three-week expedition of discovery that will take them from the lush, dense rain forests of Central America to the frigid isolation of Antarctica. |
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March 2, 2004 Opportunity Rover Finds Strong Evidence Meridiani Planum Was WetScientists have concluded the part of Mars that NASA's Opportunity rover is exploring was soaking wet in the past. |
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February 27, 2004 JPL Announces New Exploration Office, Management ChangesIn a move designed to align the lab with NASA's new exploration agenda outlined by President George W. Bush, Dr. Charles Elachi, director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., has announced personnel changes and the formation of a new office at JPL. |
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February 27, 2004 Cassini Captures Stunning View of SaturnFour months before its scheduled arrival at Saturn, the Cassini- Huygens spacecraft sent its best color postcard back to Earth of the ringed world. |
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February 27, 2004 Spirit Science Advances on Multiple LevelsJust past the halfway point of its three-month prime mission, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has achieved several scientific firsts, but may still have its best "Eureka!" moments in front of it. |
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February 26, 2004 Mars Sunset Clip from Opportunity Tells Dusty TaleDust gradually obscures the Sun during a blue-sky martian sunset seen in a sequence of newly processed frames from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. |
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February 24, 2004 'And the Laurel Goes to... the Spitzer Space Telescope'Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine has honored the teams that built NASA's new Spitzer Space Telescope with a 2003 Aerospace Laurel award. |
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February 23, 2004 JPL Director Shares New Space Vision at Local SchoolStudents at a San Fernando Valley elementary school heard firsthand about their opportunity to participate in the president's bold vision for exploring the solar system. |
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February 23, 2004 How to Make Your Own Eye-Popping 3-D PicturesSince settling in on the red planet, the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity have sent back a number of 3-D postcards to countless fans outfitted in red- and blue-tinted spectacles. |
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February 20, 2004 Innovative Web Site Brings Mars Exploration to DesktopsNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., is enhancing the availability of all Mars rover images for students and the public by distributing them via the Internet. |
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February 19, 2004 Opportunity Examines Trench as Spirit Prepares to Dig OneBy inspecting the sides and floor of a hole it dug on Mars, NASA's Opportunity rover is finding some things it did not see beforehand, including round pebbles that are shiny and soil so fine-grained that the rover's microscope can't make out individual particles. |
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February 19, 2004 Spacecraft to Launch, Designed to Harpoon Cosmic 'Moby Dick'Like the massive white whale in Herman Melville's 1851 classic "Moby Dick," comets have long been considered swift, elusive harbingers of change. |
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February 17, 2004 Opportunity Digs; Spirit AdvancesNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has scooped a trench with one of its wheels to reveal what is below the surface of a selected patch of soil. |
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February 13, 2004 International Interplanetary Networking SucceedsA pioneering demonstration of communications between NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit and the European Space Agency Mars Express orbiter succeeded. |
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February 12, 2004 Student Programs Tap Into Mars Rover AdventuresNASA's Mars Exploration Rovers are not only providing scientists a flood of information about Mars -- including new insights today about winds -- they are also adding excitement to classrooms throughout the nation. |
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February 12, 2004 Spitzer Telescope Sends a Rose for Valentine's DayOut of the dark and dusty cosmos comes an unusual valentine — a stellar nursery resembling a shimmering pink rosebud. |
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February 9, 2004 Scientists Find Ozone-Destroying MoleculeUsing measurements from a NASA aircraft flying over the Arctic, Harvard University scientists have made the first observations of a molecule that researchers have long theorized plays a key role in destroying stratospheric ozone, chlorine peroxide. |
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February 9, 2004 Mars Rover Pictures Raise 'Blueberry Muffin' QuestionsNASA's Spirit rover has begun making some of its own driving decisions while its twin, Opportunity, is presenting scientists with decisions to make about studying small spheres embedded in bedrock, like berries in a muffin. |
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February 8, 2004 A Day in the Life of a Martian ScientistWearing two watches, one for Mars time on the left wrist and one for Earth time on the right wrist, Jim Rice works in three time zones on two different planets simultaneously. |
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February 6, 2004 Healthy Spirit Cleans a Mars Rock; Opportunity RollsNASA's Spirit has returned to full health and resumed doing things never attempted on Mars before. |
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February 5, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's Opportunity rover drove about 3.5 meters (11 feet) late Wednesday toward a rock outcrop in the wall of a small crater on Mars, and mission controllers plan to send it the rest of the way to the outcrop late Thursday. |
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February 4, 2004 Opportunity Sees Tiny Spheres in Martian SoilNASA's Opportunity has examined its first patch of soil in the small crater where the rover landed on Mars and found strikingly spherical pebbles among the mix of particles there. |
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February 2, 2004 NASA Dedicates Mars Landmarks to Columbia CrewNASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe today announced the martian hills, located east of the Spirit Mars Exploration Rover's landing site, would be dedicated to the Space Shuttle Columbia STS-107 crew. |
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February 2, 2004 Opportunity and Spirit Reach OutEach of NASA's two Mars Exploration Rovers is using its versatile robotic arm for positioning tools at selected targets on the red planet. |
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February 1, 2004 Mars Rover Spirit Restored to HealthNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is healthy again, the result of recovery work by mission engineers since the robot developed computer-memory and communications problems 10 days ago. |
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January 31, 2004 Opportunity Rolls Onto Martian GroundNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity drove down a reinforced fabric ramp at the front of its lander platform and onto the soil of Mars' Meridiani Planum this morning. |
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January 30, 2004 Two Working Rovers on Martian Soil Expected by Saturday MorningGround controllers plan to tell Opportunity to drive off its lander early Saturday, and with Spirit now back in working order, NASA should soon have two healthy rovers loose on Mars. |
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January 29, 2004 NASA Satellites Help Improve Ocean Condition ForecastsFreighters, cruise lines, marine rescuers and coastal managers are among those who could benefit from prototype three-dimensional, three- day ocean condition forecasts created with the assistance of NASA satellite data, computer models and on-site ocean measurements. |
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January 29, 2004 Healthier Spirit Gets Back to Work While Opportunity Prepares to RollNASA's Spirit rover on Mars has resumed taking pictures as engineers continue work on restoring its health. |
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January 28, 2004 Opportunity Rover Begins Standing UpNASA's Opportunity rover has untucked its front wheels and latched its suspension system in place, key steps in preparing to drive off its lander and onto martian soil. |
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January 28, 2004 Space Shuttle Challenger Crew Memorialized on MarsNASA announced plans to name the landing site of the Mars Opportunity rover in honor of the Space Shuttle Challenger's final crew. |
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January 28, 2004 Pacific Dictates Droughts and DrenchingsThe cooler and drier conditions in Southern California over the last few years appear to be a direct result of a long-term ocean pattern known as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, according to research presented recently at the 2004 meeting of the American Meteorological Society. |
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January 27, 2004 Martian Landmarks Dedicated to Apollo 1 CrewNASA memorialized the Apollo 1 crew -- Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee -- by dedicating the hills surrounding the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit's landing site to the astronauts. |
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January 27, 2004 Scientists Thrilled to See Layers in Mars Rocks Near OpportunityNew pictures from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity reveal thin layers in rocks just a stone's throw from the lander platform where the rover temporarily sits. |
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January 26, 2004 Gear on Opportunity Rover Passes Martian Health CheckDuring the second day on Mars for NASA's Opportunity rover, key science instruments passed health tests and the rover made important steps in communicating directly with Earth. |
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January 25, 2004 First Images of Opportunity Site Show Bizarre LandscapeNASA's Opportunity rover returned the first pictures of its landing site early today, revealing a surreal, dark landscape unlike any ever seen before on Mars. |
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January 25, 2004 Opportunity Sits in a Small Crater, Near a Bigger OneA small impact crater on Mars is the new home for NASA's Opportunity rover, and a larger crater lies nearby. |
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January 25, 2004 NASA Hears from Opportunity Rover on MarsNASA's second Mars Exploration Rover successfully sent signals to Earth during its bouncy landing and after it came to rest on one of the three side petals of its four-sided lander. |
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January 24, 2004 Spirit Condition Upgraded as Twin Rover Nears MarsHours before NASA's Opportunity rover will reach Mars, engineers have found a way to communicate reliably with its twin, Spirit, and to get Spirit's computer out of a cycle of rebooting many times a day. |
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January 23, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's Spirit rover did not go to sleep today even after ground controllers sent commands twice for it to do so. |
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January 23, 2004 New NASA Data Release Invites You to Explore Two Vast ContinentsMarco Polo. Alexander the Great. They were some of history's most prolific explorers, each trekking across sweeping stretches of Europe and Asia in their lifetimes. |
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January 23, 2004 Rover Team Readies for Second Landing While Trying to Mend SpiritSome members of the flight team for NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers are preparing for this weekend's landing of the second rover, Opportunity, while others are focused on trying to restore the first rover, Spirit, to working order. |
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January 23, 2004 Updated Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusThe flight team for NASA's Spirit received data from the rover in a communication session that began at 13:26 Universal Time (5:26 a.m. PST) and lasted 20 minutes at a data rate of 120 bits per second. |
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January 23, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusNASA's Spirit rover communicated with Earth in a signal detected by NASA's Deep Space Network antenna complex near Madrid, Spain, at 12:34 Universal Time (4:34 a.m. PST) this morning. |
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January 22, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusFlight-team engineers for NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission were encouraged this morning when Spirit sent a simple radio signal acknowledging that the rover had received a transmission from Earth. |
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January 21, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission StatusGround controllers were able to send commands to the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit early Wednesday and received a simple signal acknowledging that the rover heard them, but they did not receive expected scientific and engineering data during scheduled communication passes during the rest of that martian day. |
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January 21, 2004 Astronomers Measure Distance to Well-Known StarThe cluster of stars known as the Pleiades is one of the most recognizable objects in the night sky, and for millennia has been celebrated in literature and legend. |
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January 20, 2004 NASA Mars Rover's First Soil Analysis Yields SurprisesThe first use of the tools on the arm of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit reveals puzzles about the soil it examined and raises anticipation about what the tool will find during its studies of a martian rock. |
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January 19, 2004 Spirit Drives to a Rock Called 'Adirondack' for Close InspectionNASA's Spirit rover has successfully driven to its first target on Mars, a football-sized rock that scientists have dubbed Adirondack. |
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January 16, 2004 Mars Rover Opportunity Mission StatusWith barely a week before reaching Mars, NASA's Opportunity spacecraft adjusted its trajectory, or flight path, today for the first time in four months. |
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January 16, 2004 Spirit Flexes Its Arm to Use Microscope on Mars' SoilNASA's Spirit rover reached out with its versatile robotic arm early today and examined a patch of fine-grained martian soil with a microscope at the end of the arm. |
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January 15, 2004 Spirit Rolls All Six Wheels onto Martian SoilNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit successfully drove off its lander platform and onto the soil of Mars early today. |
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January 14, 2004 Spirit Ready to Drive onto Mars SurfaceNASA's Spirit completed a three-stage turn early today, the last step before a drive planned early Thursday to take the rover off its lander platform and onto martian soil for the first time. |
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January 13, 2004 Go To That Crater And Turn Right: Spirit Gets A Travel ItineraryNASA's Spirit has begun pivoting atop its lander platform on Mars, and the robot's human partners have announced plans to send it toward a crater, then toward some hills, during the mission. |
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January 13, 2004 Stormy Cloud of Star Birth Glows in New Spitzer ImageA dusty stellar nursery shines brightly in a new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, formerly known as the Space Infrared Telescope Facility. |
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January 12, 2004 Spirit's Surroundings Beckon in Color PanoramaThe first 360-degree color view from NASA's Spirit Mars Exploration Rover presents a range of tempting targets from nearby rocks to hills on the horizon. |
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January 11, 2004 Spirit Rover Nearly Ready to RollNASA's Spirit rover now has its arm and all six of its wheels free, and only a single cable must be cut before it can turn and roll off its lander onto the soil of Mars. |
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January 10, 2004 NASA's Spirit Stages Martian Stand-Up PerformanceNASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has successfully completed its stand-up activities by extending the rear wheels. |
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January 9, 2004 Spirit Lowers Front Wheels, Looks Around in InfraredNASA's Spirit, the first of two Mars Exploration Rovers on the martian surface, has stood up and extended its front wheels while continuing to delight its human partners with new information about its neighborhood within Mars' Gusev Crater. |
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January 8, 2004 High School Students Land on MarsWhile their peers sweat out their next geometry quiz, high school students Courtney Dressing and Rafael Morozowski are sweating out the commencement of surface activities with the rest of the Mars Exploration Rover team. |
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January 7, 2004 Rover Airbag to Get Another TugThe engineers and scientists for NASA's Spirit are eager to get the rover off its lander and out exploring the terrain that Spirit's pictures are revealing, but caution comes first. |
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January 6, 2004 Mars Mania Lands OnlineAs the spacecraft flies, Mars is millions of miles away. |
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January 6, 2004 NASA's New Studies of Earth's Seas, Skies and SoilsThey're carbonated, salty, and alternately wet and dry. Exotic champagnes? No, they're NASA's three Earth System Science Pathfinder small-satellite program missions: Orbiting Carbon Observatory, Aquarius and Hydros. |
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January 6, 2004 The Calm After The Cometary StormHaving weathered its out-of-this-world sandblasting by cometary particles hurtling toward it at about six times the speed of a rifle bullet, NASA's Stardust spacecraft begins its two-year, 1.14 billion kilometer (708 million mile) trek back to its planet of origin. |
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January 6, 2004 Space Shuttle Columbia Crew Memorialized on MarsNASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe today announced plans to name the landing site of the Mars Spirit rover in honor of the astronauts who died in the tragic accident of the Space Shuttle Columbia in February. |
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January 6, 2004 Color Picture from Spirit is Most Detailed View of Mars Ever SeenThe people operating NASA's Spirit have received the first color pictures from the rover and a congratulatory call from the president. |
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January 5, 2004 Mars Team Energized AboutSleepy Hollow, a shallow depression in the Mars ground near NASA's Spirit rover, may become an early destination when the rover drives off its lander platform in a week or so. |
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January 4, 2004 Healthy Rover Shows Its New Neighborhood on MarsNASA's Spirit Rover is starting to examine its new surroundings, revealing a vast flatland well suited to the robot's unprecedented mobility and scientific toolkit. |
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January 4, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Spirit Mission StatusA traveling robotic geologist from NASA has landed on Mars and returned stunning images of the area around its landing site in Gusev Crater. |
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January 3, 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Spirit Mission StatusNavigators for NASA's Spirit Mars Exploration Rover put the spacecraft so close to a bull's-eye with earlier maneuvers that mission managers chose to skip the final two optional maneuvers for adjusting course before arrival at Mars. |
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January 2, 2004 NASA Spacecraft Makes Great Catch...Heads for TouchdownTeam Stardust, NASA’s first dedicated sample return mission to a comet, passed a huge milestone today by successfully navigating through the particle and gas-laden coma around comet Wild 2 (pronounced "Vilt-2"). |
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