Gale Crater Archives

ID: ESP_076745_1750,date: 10 December 2022, altitude: 268 km larger image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Status Report

A Canyon Channel In Gale Crater On Mars

by Keith CowingMarch 11, 2026March 11, 2026

This observation features an upper section of a canyon channel system that incising Mount Sharp in Gale Crater. A HiRISE image was requested as the canyon system is analogous to […]

A self-portrait of NASA’s Curiosity rover taken on June 15, 2018, when a Martian dust storm had reduced sunlight and visibility at the rover’s location in Gale Crater. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors

NASA Study: Non-biologic Processes Don’t Fully Explain Mars Organics

by Keith CowingFebruary 9, 2026February 9, 2026

In a new study, researchers say that non-biological sources they considered could not fully account for the abundance of organic compounds in a sample collected on Mars by NASA’s Curiosity […]

Alexandra Matiella Novak uses a hand-held spectrometer in the field. -- NASA/Caela Barry

Press Release

NASA Goddard Instrument Field Team at Long Valley Caldera

by Keith CowingJanuary 18, 2026July 19, 2026

Editor’s note: This blog entry is adapted from NASA social media content originally published September 12-15, 2023.

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this close-up view showing the cavernous weathering texture of an unusually shaped rock, “Phippsaksla,

Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report

Perseverance Encounters A Possible Meteorite On Mars

by Keith CowingNovember 18, 2025November 18, 2025

During the rover’s recent investigation of the bedrock at “Vernodden,” Perseverance encountered an unusually shaped rock about 80 centimeters across (about 31 inches) called “Phippsaksla.”

Climatology of diurnal pressure variation (dP/dt) in units of Pa h⁻¹. High-frequency signals (with periods shorter than 3,700 s) were removed from the original time series prior to differentiation. Sunrise and sunset are indicated by white curves around 06:00 and 18:00 LT (local true solar time). The global dust content, calculated from the climatologies of Montabone et al. (2015; 2020), is displayed in the lower panel, where individual dust events are also identified. Seasons are delimited by vertical lines, and solstices are shaded in pale yellow in the lower panel (dust). Figure adapted from Hernández et al. (2024). -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report

Seasonal and Diurnal Variability of Atmospheric Pressure in Jezero Crater, Mars, from MEDA Measurements on the Perseverance Rover

by Keith CowingNovember 14, 2025November 14, 2025

We present an analysis of atmospheric pressure variability inside Jezero Crater on Mars based on measurements from the MEDA meteorological station aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover.

A vantage point on "Vera Rubin Ridge" provided NASA's Curiosity Mars rover this detailed look back over the area where it began its mission inside Gale Crater, plus more-distant features of the crater. -- NASA/JPL/Caltech larger image

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors

Evidence Of Ancient Underground Water Reveals Mars May Have Stayed Habitable Longer Than Believed

by Keith CowingNovember 13, 2025November 13, 2025

Scientists from New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) have uncovered new evidence that water once flowed beneath the surface of Mars, revealing that the planet may have remained habitable for […]

The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover includes temperature and humidity sensors mounted on the rover's mast. One of the REMS booms extends to the left from the mast in this view. Spain provided REMS to NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Project. The monitoring station has provided information about air pressure, relative humidity, air temperature, ground temperature, wind and ultraviolet radiation in all Martian seasons and at all times of day or night. This view is a detail from a January 2015 Curiosity self-portrait. The self-portrait, at http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19142, was assembled from images taken by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager.

Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Radiation, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Ultraviolet And Biological Effective Dose Observations At Gale Crater, Mars

by Keith CowingMay 19, 2025May 19, 2025

The incident ultraviolet (UV) irradiance on the surface of Mars is strongly sterilizing and plays a critical role in atmospheric and near-surface photochemistry.

Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors

NASA’s Curiosity Rover May Have Solved Mars’ Missing Carbonate Mystery

by Keith CowingApril 17, 2025April 17, 2025

New findings from NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover could provide an answer to the mystery of what happened to the planet’s ancient atmosphere and how Mars has evolved over time.

This graphic shows the long-chain organic molecules decane, undecane, and dodecane. These are the largest organic molecules discovered on Mars to date. They were detected in a drilled rock sample called “Cumberland” that was analyzed by the Sample Analysis at Mars lab inside the belly of NASA’s Curiosity rover. The rover, whose selfie is on the right side of the image, has been exploring Gale Crater since 2012. An image of the Cumberland drill hole is faintly visible in the background of the molecule chains. NASA/Dan Gallagher

Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release

Curiosity Rover Detects Largest Organic Molecules Found On Mars

by Keith CowingMarch 24, 2025March 24, 2025

Researchers analyzing pulverized rock onboard NASA’s Curiosity rover have found the largest organic compounds on the Red Planet to date. The finding, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National […]

This illustration depicts a lake of water partially filling Mars’ Gale Crater, receiving runoff from snow melting on the crater’s northern rim. Evidence of ancient streams, deltas and lakes that NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover mission has found in the patterns of sedimentary deposits in Gale Crater suggests the crater held a lake such as this more than three billion years ago, filling and drying in multiple cycles over tens of millions of years. Larger image

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Signatures of Ice-Free Ancient Ponds and Lakes Found on Mars

by Keith CowingJanuary 27, 2025January 27, 2025

Researchers have discovered two sets of ancient wave ripples on Mars, signatures of long-dried bodies of water preserved in the rock record. Wave ripples are small undulations in the sandy […]