Between 1 and 7 October, ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and Mars Express spacecraft turned their eyes towards interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, as it passed close to Mars.
ESA
Posted inDesert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report
ExoMars Rosalind Franklin Mars Rover Sample Processing
The Rosalind Franklin rover’s drill has a maximum reach of two metres – deeper than any other mission has ever attempted on the Red Planet. This depth allows access to […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrogeology, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, People Of Astrobiology, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
ESA Offworld Astronaut Cave Exploration Training
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli took pictures of MBRSC astronaut Mohammad AlMulla while he was conducting a microbiological investigation close to the underground base camp in Abel Cave.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
ESA Away Team Training: Underground Microbiology
Ettore Lopo and Marco Vattano, the science team of ESA CAVES 2025 course, explain the latest details of microbiological analyses to astronauts Mohammad AlMulla (MBRSC) and Makoto Suwa (JAXA).
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Enceladus, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Saturn, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Cassini Proves The Existence Of Complex Chemistry Within Enceladus’ Ocean
Scientists digging through data collected by the Cassini spacecraft have found new complex organic molecules spewing from Saturn’s moon Enceladus. This is a clear sign that complex chemical reactions are […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, People Of Astrobiology, Status Report
ESA Underground Astronaut Training For Offworld Cave Exploration
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli is ready to descend the active shaft in Abel Cave to reach the underground base camp.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrogeology, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Microbiology & Virology, Sample Return, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
ESA Away Team Tricorder Training
ESA is developing a digital tool to support lunar exploration. The Electronic Field Book (EFB) is an all-in-one information system that exchanges data and integrates science activities in remote environments.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Press Release
Mars’ Atmospheric Mille-feuille
ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter keeps gathering information from its orbit around Mars to understand its ancient past and potential habitability. The spacecraft was cruising over the southern highlands of […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Away Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Fossils & Paleontology, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release
ESA Away Team Training: Lunar Geology Lessons For Artemis
Editor’s note: when it comes to conducting field trips – sorties – Away Team missions – on another world, astrogeology and astrobiology and astrochemistry overlap with one another all the […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, PLATO, Press Release
Plato Habitable Planet Observing Telescope Arrives at ESTEC
The European Space Agency’s Plato spacecraft has safely arrived at ESTEC, ESA’s technical heart in the Netherlands. There, engineers will complete the spacecraft by connecting its solar panels and sunshield, […]