Mars Archives

The Investigating Mars at Three Sites Campaign would visit three different locations on Mars. Source NASEM, A Science Strategy for the Human Exploration of Mars (The National Academies Press, Washington, DC, 2025), https://doi.org/10.17226/28594.

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Highlighting A Science Strategy For Human Exploration Of Mars

by Keith CowingMay 26, 2026May 26, 2026

A Science Strategy for Human Exploration of Mars, charts a bold, scientifically based blueprint for humanity’s greatest cosmic adventure—sending explorers to Mars to answer the universe’s most profound questions: Is […]

a The Viking 1 & 2 landers detected chlorinated breakdown products likely formed through interactions between organics and oxychlorine anions during thermal volatilization utilized for analysis11,12, b the Curiosity rover identified various functionalized organic fragments and long-chain n-alkanes (for simplicity, a subset is illustrated here)13,15, and the Perseverance rover measured redox-driven organo-mineral associations and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); * indicates that PAHs reported by Fornaro et al. (2025) were found in different locations and geologic units than organo-mineral associations reported by Hurowitz et al. (2025)14,16. d Carbonaceous meteorites and asteroids delivered to planetary surfaces contain a rich array of organics, including some of the same compounds detected on Mars (e.g., macromolecular carbon, thiophenes, PAHs, long-chain n-alkanes), along with a diverse suite of prebiotic organics, which highlights the importance of understanding abiotic background material when searching for organic biosignatures on Mars5,6,7,18. Image credits: a NASA/JPL, b NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS, c NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS, d NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona. -- Nature via PubMed

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Status Report

An Organics-forward Approach To Searching For Life On Mars

by Keith CowingMay 24, 2026May 24, 2026

The modern Martian surface is cold, dry, oxidizing, and perpetually bombarded with radiation, rendering it generally inhospitable to life as we know it.

Credits: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO Larger image

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Status Report

Overhead View Of A Small Chaotic Area In Shalbatana Vallis On Mars

by Keith CowingMay 21, 2026May 21, 2026

This view was generated from the digital terrain model and the nadir and colour channels of the High Resolution Stereo Camera on ESA’s Mars Express.

Schematic cross sections of Earth and Mars, showing the major internal components and atmospheric components, to scale. For simplicity, oceanic and continental crust for Earth are not distinguished, nor is the interior structure of Earth’s mantle shown. -- astro-ph.EP

Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report, Terraforming & Geoengineering, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Mars As An Exoplanet: Lessons From A Planet At The Edge Of Habitability

by Keith CowingMay 20, 2026May 20, 2026

Mars is the Solar System’s canonical small, rocky planet that transitioned from early geologic activity and surface liquid water to a cold and arid planet with a thin, cold, CO2-dominated […]

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Limits of Terrestrial Life and the Probability of Growth on Mars (Virtual Meeting)

by Keith CowingMay 20, 2026May 20, 2026

Committee on Planetary Protection (CoPP) (Virtual Meeting June 1-2, 2026)June 1 – 2, 2026 This meeting is to provide information to NASA so it can develop a prioritized list of […]

An artistic representation of the Zwan-Wolf effect at Mars, as observed by NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) mission. While this effect typically helps to deflect the solar wind at Earth, at Mars it is shown to “squeeze” the atmosphere and have implications on how space weather interacts with the planet. The yellow arrows represent the movement of the effect in the Martian atmosphere. LASP/CU Boulder

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Magnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,, Mars, Press Release, Space Weather & Heliophysics

MAVEN Discovers Space Weather Atmospheric Effect At Mars

by Keith CowingMay 20, 2026May 20, 2026

In December 2023, scientists looking at Mars data stumbled across something completely unexpected — observations of an atmospheric effect never before seen in the Red Planet’s atmosphere.

Atacama with a drill hole - NASA Larger image

Astrogeology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Curiosity Rover Shakes Loose A Pesky Mars Rock Named “Atacama”

by Keith CowingMay 17, 2026May 17, 2026

After NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover drilled a sample from this rock on April 25, 2026, it withdrew its robotic arm and pulled the entire rock off the surface with it.

The path of a fragment ejected from Earth to the clouds of Venus. (a) A life-containing bolide is ejected from Earth's subsurface by an impact event.

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Impact events, Meteorites & Asteroids, Panspermia, Status Report, Venus

A Panspermia Origin For Venus Cloud Life

by Keith CowingMay 15, 2026May 15, 2026

Decades of study have hinted at the astrobiological potential of Venus’s cloud layers. This potential is often cast as stemming from the idea that the Venusian surface was clement in […]

Spatial distribution of dynamically active regions, defined as grid cells exceeding a velocity threshold of 0.3 m s−1 , accumulated over the full simulation period and vertically integrated by altitude. -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Desert Worlds, Magnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,, Mars, Status Report

Global Evolution Of Electric Fields During Planet Encircling Dust Storms On Mars

by Keith CowingMay 15, 2026May 15, 2026

Planet-encircling dust storms fundamentally reshape Martian weather and the near-surface electrostatic environment.

(a) Mastcam-Z image of the base of the delta with the Rockytop outcrop within the 6 m high scarp (sol 429, zcam08452) located at the base of the Tenby formation immediately overlying the Hogwallow Flats light-toned deposits. The white arrow indicates the fallen block where the SuperCam target Fourway has been analyzed. -- JGR Planets

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In Situ Carbonation of Sedimentary and Igneous Rocks of Ultramafic Composition in Jezero Crater, Mars

by Keith CowingMay 15, 2026May 15, 2026

Over 3.5 years of exploration in Jezero Crater, the Perseverance rover has explored several geological units of diverse origins and natures, performing multi-technique remote analyses of the chemistry and mineralogy […]