MAVEN

Astronomy

Solar wind vanishes completely, causing Mars' magnetosphere to swell

The solar wind is constant in the solar system – except on Christmas Day 2022 when it suddenly vanished completely. The event was detected by a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars, which found that the Red Planet’s magnetosphere tripled in size in response.

Artist's concept of Jupiter/Exoliner docking with the ISS

Astronomy

Lockheed Martin previews next generation space cargo ships

Lockheed Martin's proposal for NASA's CRS-2 program uses new cargo ships, which are designed to not only resupply the International Space Station, but also support manned deep space missions, such as the first expedition to Mars.

NASA's MAVEN has acted as a data relay for the Curiosity rover (Image: NASA)

Astronomy

MAVEN uses special radio to relay data from Curiosity Mars rover

NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft has used a special radio apparatus to relay 550 megabits of data from the Curiosity rover to NASA’s Deep Space Network back on Earth.

Artist's concept of the MAVEN spacecraft (Image: NASA/Goddard)

Astronomy

MAVEN Mars orbiter to make launch window to study Martian atmosphere

On Monday, NASA confirmed the launch date of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN mission (MAVEN), which is tasked with studying the upper atmosphere of the Red Planet in an attempt to answer the question of where the Martian atmosphere went.