Present Day Water Flows on Mars

There seem to be 2 new “gully” sites with light toned markings on the surface that suggest that liquid water has flowed as recently as within the past 7 years on Mars. The smoking gun is revealed in earlier images taken of the same region with these details not present and this is what gives NASA the time frame of 7 years.

Here is a before and after image which illustrates this: More to be found at www.msss.com.

An interesting footnote is that they also discovered recent impact craters that fell within the last 10 years as well… which is also a first in the Solar System.

Big News from The Red Planet?

There is a buzz about a 1PM impromptu news conference at NASA today about some “significant” finds on Mars from the Mars Global Surveyor. Word has it it may be about water currently existing on the surface, I was under the impression that they knew ice water exists on the surface, so perhaps this is liquid moving water?! Link to a news story.

More Landers on Mars from Orbit

Some new images of Mars landers taken by MRO. The first is the Viking 1 and 2 landers which landed on Mars some 30 years ago. The third is the Spirit rover’s current position. Viking 2 Viking 1 Spirit Rover

Wallpaper: Opportunity at Victoria Crater

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter took a look at The Opportunity Rover as it approached Victoria Crater and returned these incredible images. The highest resolution images of Mars that came from any previous mission could make out details as big as a large truck. Now with MRO details as small as a sofa can be seen and to illustrate this, download the hires of this wallpaper and take a look at the tiny rover at the crater’s edge.

Wallpaper: Mars Portrait

Mars is historically the most popular planet in our system. It has been the subject of many science-fiction stories as well as legitimate scientific investigation in the search for life outside of our own home. Recent missions to Mars have all but confirmed the idea that Mars was at one time a wet Earthlike place, covered rivers, seas and even oceans. Where all that water has gone is the subject of great interest and many have not given up the idea that we may one day still find some kind of life there if not the remains of life that had at one time thrived on the surface.The below wallpaper was the previous “portrait” image of Mars, but I have decided that the new Rosetta image of Mars captured during its gravity assist in 2007 is a better full globe image of the red planet. Notice the color variation… which is true? Well, the newer one from 2007 looks closer to Hubble views as seen from Earth orbit and unless they are manipulating colors from Hubble it would lead me to think that the Rosetta image is more honest.