Exploration Archives

During the one-year analog mission, crew members will participate in various activities, including sample collection and analysis utilizing a glovebox. Bill Stafford/NASA

Analog Studies, Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Astronauts and Explorers, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Status Report

NASA Flight Analog Projects Crew Selection Questionnaire Information Collection

by Keith CowingNovember 29, 2025November 29, 2025

[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 225 (Tuesday, November 25, 2025)] [Notices] [Pages 53392-53393] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 2025-20876] https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-11-25/html/2025-20876.htm

Representative samples from selected Mars-Bench datasets, from all three task categories. -- cs.CV

Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Away Teams & Field Reports, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report

Mars-Bench: A Benchmark for Evaluating Foundation Models for Mars Science Tasks

by Keith CowingNovember 28, 2025November 28, 2025

Foundation models have enabled rapid progress across many specialized domains by leveraging large-scale pre-training on unlabeled data, demonstrating strong generalization to a variety of downstream tasks.

Schematic representation of extreme environments across the Indian subcontinent and the Indian Ocean that serve as planetary analogues. Terrestrial ecosystems include mud volcanoes, saline habitats, desert sandstorms, glaciers, ophiolites, geothermal springs, high-altitude lakes, and natural caves and mines. Marine ecosystems of the Indian Ocean remain relatively underexplored, with documented sites including deep-sea hydrothermal vents and subsurface trenches. This figure is adapted and inspired by Merino et al. (2019).617618619620

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Planetary Analog Sites In The Indian Subcontinent And The Indian Ocean: Underexplored Environments Suited For Astrobiological And Space Research

by Keith CowingOctober 5, 2025October 5, 2025

The central objective of astrobiology is to evaluate the habitability of other planetary bodies and given the high cost and logistical complexity of space missions, preliminary investigations of planetary analog […]

Credits: ESA / V.Crobu -- ESA Larger image

Analog 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

by Keith CowingOctober 4, 2025October 4, 2025

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.

jsc2023e041422 --- Artemis II science trainers push a lunar tool cart across the lunar-like landscape of Iceland during an Artemis II crew geology field training. Date Created:2022-07-15 Larger image

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release

Astronaut Away Team Field Training In Iceland

by Keith CowingSeptember 20, 2025September 20, 2025

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 […]

Conferences and Meetings, Exploration Gear & Tech, Interstellar, Missions & Hardware, Science Fiction, Status Report

Interstellar Research Group – Interstellar Symposium

by Keith CowingAugust 20, 2025August 20, 2025

The Interstellar Research Group is hosting its 9th Interstellar Symposium from October 12 to 15 2025 in Austin, Texas.

Experimental design and instructions for testing alternative localization methods. -- Sensors 2025

AI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Digital Twin for Analog Mars Missions: Investigating Local Positioning Alternatives for GNSS-Denied Environments

by Keith CowingAugust 14, 2025August 14, 2025

Future planetary exploration missions will rely heavily on efficient human–robot interaction to ensure astronaut safety and maximize scientific return.

The glass sponge, Advhena magnifica, prior to being collected in 2016 at a depth of ~2,000 meters (6,560 feet). Scientists call this class of sponges “glass” because their skeletons are made of silica (glass). Their bodies contain fascinating tissues that consist of many nuclei within a single membrane, and these tissues help conduct electrical signals across the sponge making them able to respond quickly to external stimuli. Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas.

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Fossils & Paleontology, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Science Fiction, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ocean Planet Exploration And Taxonomy: Naming A Strange New Species

by Keith CowingJuly 14, 2025July 14, 2025

Editor’s note: one day we will begin a detailed exploration of ocean worlds other than our own. Hopefully they will be habitable – and inhabited. Given that we still find […]

By efficient use of local extraterrestrial resources and promotion of a more sustainable supply chain, synthetic biology can contribute significantly to human space exploration missions. This is done through incorporating the extraction, processing, and production of raw materials into consumables (A), enhancing recycling ranging from food production to waste management within life support systems (B), supporting radiation and stress protection strategies by producing stable biomolecules to mitigate harmful biological effects within life support systems (C), and engineering customized therapies, nutraceuticals, and biosensors to bolster astronauts’ health (D). CREDIT: Midjourney software. -- NPJ Microgravity

Commercial & Private Sector, Exploration Gear & Tech, Life Support Systems, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Status Report

Synthetic Biology For Space Exploration

by Keith CowingJuly 14, 2025July 14, 2025

Human space exploration faces different challenges. Topics like Bioregenerative Life Support Systems, In Situ Resource Utilization, and radiation protection, still require for more suitable solutions to be applied in long-term […]

In this approach, raw materials for habitat construction are synthesized from algal and plant feedstocks. Biomass growth, processing, and recycling all take place in surface habitats made from recyclable bioplastics. -- Science Advances via PubMed

Astropharmacy / Biotechnology, Commercial & Private Sector, Exploration Gear & Tech, Life Support Systems, Missions & Hardware, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Press Release

Offworld Biotechnology: Using Bioplastics For Extraterrestrial Habitats

by Keith CowingJuly 13, 2025

If humans are ever going to live beyond Earth, they’ll need to construct habitats. But transporting enough industrial material to create livable spaces would be incredibly challenging and expensive. Researchers […]