NASA's MAVEN Mars orbiter, depicted in this artist concept, will explore the mystery of atmospheric-loss on Mars.
NASA has given a green light for development of a 2013 Mars orbiter mission to investigate the mystery of how Mars lost much of its atmosphere: the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (Maven) mission.
Clues on the Martian surface, such as features resembling dry riverbeds and minerals that only form in the presence of liquid water, suggest that Mars once had a denser atmosphere, which supported the presence of liquid water on the surface. As part of a dramatic climate change, most of the Martian atmosphere was lost. Maven will make definitive scientific measurements of present-day atmospheric loss that will offer insight into the Red Planet's history.
Approval to proceed with development followed a review at NASA Headquarters of the detailed plans, instrument suite, budget, and risk factor analysis for the spacecraft.
The mission is led by its principal investigator, Bruce Jakosky of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., manages the mission, which is part of the NASA Mars Exploration Program managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
› Read the full news release
View my last 3 blog postings...
Clues on the Martian surface, such as features resembling dry riverbeds and minerals that only form in the presence of liquid water, suggest that Mars once had a denser atmosphere, which supported the presence of liquid water on the surface. As part of a dramatic climate change, most of the Martian atmosphere was lost. Maven will make definitive scientific measurements of present-day atmospheric loss that will offer insight into the Red Planet's history.
Approval to proceed with development followed a review at NASA Headquarters of the detailed plans, instrument suite, budget, and risk factor analysis for the spacecraft.
The mission is led by its principal investigator, Bruce Jakosky of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., manages the mission, which is part of the NASA Mars Exploration Program managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
› Read the full news release
View my last 3 blog postings...
- NASA and NSF-Funded Research Finds First Potential...
- NASA's EPOXI Mission Sets Up for Comet Flyby
- Atmosphere Checked, One Mars Year Before a Landing....
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