Mysterious, spiral-shaped ultraviolet light pulses over Mars

Mysterious, spiral-shaped ultraviolet light pulses over Mars

New images from NASA's MAVEN spacecraft reveal wide areas of Mars' night sky pulsing in ultraviolet light. While researchers understand the light's source, its mysterious spiral shape left them puzzled. "There is a vast spiral of ultraviolet light…

Comet Siding Spring plunged the magnetic field around Mars into chaos

Comet Siding Spring plunged the magnetic field around Mars into chaos

When comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) made its historic encounter with planet Mars in October 2014, passing roughly 140 000 km (87 00 miles) from its surface, it wreaked havoc on the magnetic environment around Mars. The effect, temporary but profound, was measured…

MAVEN detects unexpected aurora and mysterious dust cloud around Mars

MAVEN detects unexpected aurora and mysterious dust cloud around Mars

Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft has observed two unexpected phenomena in the Martian atmosphere: an unexplained high-altitude dust cloud and aurora that reaches deep into the Martian atmosphere.The presence of the dust at orbital altitudes from

MAVEN identifies links in chain leading to atmospheric loss

MAVEN identifies links in chain leading to atmospheric loss

Early discoveries by NASA’s newest Mars orbiter are starting to reveal key features about the loss of the planet’s atmosphere to space over time. The findings are among the first returns from NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) missio

Siding Spring’s flyby effects on Martian atmosphere revealed

Siding Spring’s flyby effects on Martian atmosphere revealed

Two NASA and one European spacecraft that obtained the first up-close observations of a comet flyby of Mars on October 19, 2014 have gathered new information about the basic properties of the comet’s nucleus and directly detected the effects on the Martian atmosph

Space fleet ready for Siding Spring’s historic brush with Mars

Space fleet ready for Siding Spring’s historic brush with Mars

C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) is scheduled for a very close flyby at only about 139 500 km (88 000 miles) away from the surface of Mars on October 19, 2014 around 18:27 UTC. That is less than half the distance between Earth and its moon and less than one-tenth the distance

MAVEN returns its first Mars observations

MAVEN returns its first Mars observations

Just after arrival, NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN), the first spacecraft sent to explore the tenuous upper atmosphere of Mars, has started working on it's mission. Within 24 hours of being placed in the Red Planet's orbit, the spacec

India’s first Mars satellite ‘Mangalyaan’ enters orbit

India’s first Mars satellite ‘Mangalyaan’ enters orbit

India's first interplanetary mission to planet Mars, Mars Orbiter Mission, arrived in the Martian orbit on September 24, 2014 making India the first nation to enter the Mars's orbit in it’s first attempt and the first Asian nation to reach the Red planet.I