Next phase reached in definition of Mars Sample Return mission
...turn capsule, while the second carries the surface lander and the Mars ascent vehicle which will launch the sample into Mars orbit ready for return to Earth. The new 'MSR Phase A2 Systems Study', which will be undertaken by European industry in close coordination with ESA, will be performed in two main step...Comet dust brought back to Earth: Paving the way for Rosetta
... Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014 and deliver a lander onto its surface. With Stardust, scientists will have access to information about particles collected from the 'coma', the halo of dust and gas surrounding the comet tail. "These tiny particles, mostly micrometres in size, will be cut into even fin...ASU geologists suggest Mars features are result of meteorite strikes, not of evaporated lakes
... well have formed similarly." When the Opportunity lander touched down on the Meridiani Planum in January 2004, it began a very important period in planetary exploration. The rover has operated for nearly two years -- when it was designed to operate for 90 days -- and has returned many breathtaking images o...Microbes under Greenland Ice may be preview of what scientists find under Mars' surface
...ruments, if they could be flown to Mars and if the lander could drop down at a place where Mars orbiters have found the methane concentration highest," Price said. "There are oodles of craters on Mars from meteorites and small asteroids colliding with Mars and churning up material from a suitable depth, so ...