Members of the MEPAG (Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group) community, There have been deeply concerning developments in the NASA MEP budget and proposed federal R&A funding policy in the last […]
Missions & Hardware
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Stellar Cartography
CHEOPS Exoplanet Mission Extended
Following the remarkable scientific achievements of the space telescope CHEOPS, the European Space Agency (ESA) has decided to extend the mission once again.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Ice Giant, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Uranus
Uranus Orbiter and Probe: Mission Challenges and Concept Updates Since the Origins, Worlds, and Life Decadal Survey
Origins, Worlds, and Life: Planetary Science and Astrobiology in the Next Decade identified a Uranus Orbiter and Probe as the highest-priority strategic mission for the decade 2023–2032, as it enables […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Sample Return, Status Report
Quantifying Surface Heterogeneity Across Asteroid (101955) Bennu using Candidate Site Remote Sensing Data
The OSIRIS-REx mission acquired spatially resolved (2-10 m spot sizes) visible-near infrared (VNIR) and thermal infrared (TIR) spectra across four candidate sampling sites on asteroid (101955) Bennu: Nightingale, Osprey, Sandpiper, […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Status Report
NASA Announcement of Opportunity Astrophysics Explorers Program 2026 Small Explorer (SMEX) Final Text Released
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Science Mission Directorate (SMD) announces the release of an Announcement of Opportunity (AO) to solicit Principal Investigator (PI)-led space science investigations for the […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Status Report
Biocidal Conditions in Low-Mars-Orbit Can Inactivate Bioburden on External Mars Spacecraft Surfaces and Dust Particles Within a Few Sols
Mars Sample Return Program planning includes a series of spacecraft staged both on the Martian surface and in low-Mars-orbit (LMO).
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Preparing for the Early eVolution Explorer: Detecting the Primordial, Transiting Exoplanet Population
The close-in small planet population may be formed either with hydrogen/helium dominated envelopes or with water-rich interiors. Both scenarios reproduce the present day planet population in mass, radius, and periods, […]
Posted inIcy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Life Support Systems, Missions & Hardware, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Status Report, Titan
Titan’s Resources and their Utilization
Saturn’s moon Titan is a unique environment in the solar system. It is the only moon with an atmosphere, composed primarily of the gases N2 and CH4. It is also […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Ganymede, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Status Report
Potential Cryovolcanic Regions on Ganymede: A Priority Target for JUICE
One of the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission goals of the European Space Agency, launched in 2023 April, is the detailed characterization of Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon and a […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Terraforming & Geoengineering, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
ExoMars Rosalind Franklin Astrobiology Rover Targets A Vast Bed Of Clay In Its Search For Life
In the region where the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover will search for signs of life, clay deposits extend beyond previous estimates, a new study finds. One hypothesis even suggests a […]