Tag Archive for 'Mars Odyssey'

A topographic map of the Eridania region of Mars; volcanic structures described by Michalski et al. are classified by morphology and morphometrics. Image credit: Michalski et al., doi: 10.1038/s41550-023-02191-7.

Early Mars was Tectonically and Volcanically Active, Study Suggests

Feb 12, 2024 by News Staff

The relatively well-preserved ancient crust of Mars provides a natural window into early planetary evolution not available on Earth. Mars has generally...

This image of the Martian horizon was captured by the THEMIS camera on NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU.

Mars Odyssey Beams Back Magnificent Images of Martian Horizon

Nov 29, 2023 by News Staff

In an operation that took mission scientists three months to plan, NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter captured a series of panoramic images that showcases the...

These dark slope streaks resulted from dust avalanches in Acheron Fossae, Mars. The HiRISE camera aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured them on December 3, 2006. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / University of Arizona.

Planetary Scientists Crack Mystery of Martian Dust Avalanches

May 9, 2022 by News Staff

In the 2000s, planetary researchers spotted ghostly, blue-white morning frost on the Martian surface in visible light images from NASA’s Mars Odyssey...

This oblique color view from the HiRISE instrument onboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows a lithified field of sand dunes within Melas Chasma, Valles Marineris. The large degree of preserved morphology for many of these paleodunes reveals important information regarding the acting wind regime and climate prior to their cementation. Image credit: NASA / JPL / University of Arizona.

One-Billion-Year-Old Sand Dunes Spotted on Mars

Oct 12, 2020 by News Staff

Planetary researchers have mapped and characterized ancient sand dune fields in the canyons of Valles Marineris on Mars. Their discovery offers new insights...

These images from the THEMIS camera on NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter show Phobos during different phases: waxing, waning and full. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / NAU.

Mars Odyssey Captures New Thermal Images of Phobos

Jun 8, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter have captured new infrared images of Phobos, the...

This map shows near-surface water ice on Mars; cool colors represent less than one foot (30 cm) below the surface; warm colors are over two feet (60 cm) deep; sprawling brown zones on the map represent areas where a landing spacecraft would sink into fine dust; the outlined box represents the ideal region to send astronauts for them to be able to dig up water ice. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU.

New Map Shows Near-Surface Water Ice on Mars

Dec 12, 2019 by News Staff

Using data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey orbiter, a team of planetary researchers have crated a map of the water ice depth...

These three views of the Martian moon Phobos were taken by NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter using its THEMIS camera. Each color represents a different temperature range. The upper image was taken in a full-moon phase, which is better for studying material composition. The two views below were taken while Phobos was in a half-moon phase, which is better for studying surface textures. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / SSI.

Mars Odyssey Examines Phobos in Infrared Light

May 13, 2019 by News Staff

On April 24, 2019, NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter captured a new thermal image of Phobos, the larger of Mars’ two moons. Each color in the full-moon image...

InSight Successfully Lands on Mars, Sends First Images

Nov 27, 2018 by News Staff

After an almost seven-month, 300-million-mile (458 million km) journey from Earth, NASA’s InSight lander successfully touched down Monday, November 26,...

An artist’s impression of a terraformed Mars. Image credit: Daein Ballard / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Ancient Mars Had Ample Chemical Energy to Support Subsurface Microbial Colonies

Sep 25, 2018 by News Staff

Mars had right conditions for subsurface life some 3.7 to 4.1 billion years ago (Noachian period), according to new research from Brown University. An...

This image combines two products from the first pointing at Phobos by Mars Odyssey’s THEMIS camera. Surface-temperature information from observation in thermal-infrared wavelengths is overlaid on a more detailed image from a visible-light observation. The left edge of the small moon was in darkness, and the right edge in morning sunlight. The distance to Phobos from Mars Odyssey during the observation was about 3,424 miles (5,511 km). Researchers will analyze the surface-temperature information from this observation and possible future THEMIS observations to learn how quickly the surface warms after sunup or cools after sundown. That could provide information about surface materials, because larger rocks heat or cool more slowly than smaller particles do. The thermal information in this image is from merging observations made in four thermal-infrared wavelength bands, centered from 11.04 microns to 14.88 microns. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / Arizona State University.

Mars Odyssey Captures Phobos in Infrared Light

Oct 5, 2017 by News Staff

The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft observed Phobos — the larger and inner of the two natural...

Mars Odyssey spotted possible water ice in the Medusa Fossae area of Mars, which is in an equatorial region of the planet to the lower left in this view. Image credit: Steve Lee, University of Colorado / Jim Bell, Cornell University / Mike Wolff, Space Science Institute / NASA.

NASA’s Mars Odyssey Orbiter Spots Possible Water Ice near Martian Equator

Oct 2, 2017 by News Staff

NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft has discovered evidence of significant hydration near the Martian equator. Mars Odyssey spotted possible water ice in...

This view of the Martian gravity map shows the Tharsis volcanoes and surrounding flexure: the white areas in the center are higher-gravity regions produced by the massive Tharsis volcanoes, and the surrounding blue areas are lower-gravity regions that may be cracks in the crust. Image credit: MIT / UMBC-CRESST / GSFC.

NASA Scientists Release Map of Mars’ Gravity

Mar 22, 2016 by News Staff

A team of researchers led by Dr. Antonio Genova of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center has released a detailed new map of Mars’ gravity. This view of...

This image shows Comet 2013 A1, also known as Siding Spring, as captured by Wide Field Camera 3 on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J.-Y. Li, Planetary Science Institute.

NASA’s Mars Fleet Studies Comet Siding Spring

Oct 20, 2014 by News Staff

Three NASA Mars orbiters – Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MAVEN orbiter – and two Mars rovers are part of a campaign to study Comet...

Unlike an ordinary daytime photo, this nighttime image of Martian surface shows how warm various surface areas are: brighter tones mean warmer temperatures, which indicate areas with rockier surface materials; darker areas indicate cooler and dustier terrain. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / Arizona State University.

Scientists Create Map of Martian Surface Properties

Jul 18, 2014 by News Staff

A group of planetary scientists using data from the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) onboard NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter has created the most...