Nebula Messier 78 Region in Orion: Visible & Infrared Light Views | ESO

Nebula Messier 78 Region in Orion: Visible & Infrared Light Views | ESO

The reflection nebula Messier 78 is a vibrant nursery of star formation enveloped in a shroud of interstellar dust. It lies in the constellation of Orion within our Milky Way galaxy. 

Distance: ~1,400 light years

These comparison cutouts show unique parts of this rich star-forming complex in Orion appear at distinct light wavelengths. In the infrared images from the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) (lower row), the dust is much more transparent than in the visible light pictures from the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope (upper row).

Credit: ESO/Igor Chekalin
Release Date: Oct. 5, 2016

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #NGC2068 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #OpticalAstronomy #VISTATelescope #InfraredAstronomy #AtacamaDesert #Chile #Europe #Infographic #STEM #Education

Journey to Nebula Messier 78's Dust Clouds in Orion | ESO

Journey to Nebula Messier 78's Dust Clouds in Orion | ESO

This zoom sequence opens with a wide-field view of the Milky Way. We close in on the constellation of Orion and as we zoom in on to a region close to Orion’s famous Belt, a fascinating region of dust and reflection nebulosity—known as Messier 78—comes into view. At the end of the zoom, submillimeter-wavelength observations from the LArge APEX BOlometer CAmera (LABOCA) camera on the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) reveal the heat glow of the dust grains, shown here in orange tones.

The final image shows the region surrounding the reflection nebula Messier 78, just to the north of Orion’s belt. You can see clouds of cosmic dust threaded through the nebula like a string of pearls. The submillimeter-wavelength observations, made with the APEX telescope and shown here in orange, use the heat glow of interstellar dust grains to show astronomers where new stars are being formed. They are overlaid on a view of the region in visible light.

Distance: ~1,400 light years

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO) / APEX (MPIfR/ESO/OSO) / T. Stanke et al. / Igor Chekalin / Digitized Sky Survey 2

Duration: 43 seconds
Release Date: May 2, 2012

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #NGC2068 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #AtacamaPathfinderExperiment #APEX #ChajnantorPlateau #AtacamaDesert #Chile #Europe #DSS2 #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up views of Nebula Messier 78's Dust Clouds in Orion | ESO

Close-up views of Nebula Messier 78's Dust Clouds in Orion | ESO

This image of the region surrounding the reflection nebula Messier 78, just to the north of Orion’s belt, shows clouds of cosmic dust threaded through the nebula like a string of pearls. The submillimeter-wavelength observations, made with the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope and shown here in orange, use the heat glow of interstellar dust grains to show astronomers where new stars are being formed. They are overlaid on a view of the region in visible light.

Distance: ~1,400 light years

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO) / APEX (MPIfR/ESO/OSO) / T. Stanke et al. / Igor Chekalin / Digitized Sky Survey 2

Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: May 2, 2012

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #NGC2068 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #AtacamaPathfinderExperiment #APEX #ChajnantorPlateau #AtacamaDesert #Chile #Europe #DSS #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Cosmic Dust Clouds of Nebula Messier 78 in Orion | European Southern Observatory

Cosmic Dust Clouds of Nebula Messier 78 in Orion | European Southern Observatory

This image of the region surrounding the reflection nebula Messier 78, just to the north of Orion’s belt, shows clouds of cosmic dust threaded through the nebula like a string of pearls. The submillimeter-wavelength observations, made with the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope and shown here in orange, use the heat glow of interstellar dust grains to show astronomers where new stars are being formed. They are overlaid on a view of the region in visible light.

Distance: ~1,400 light years

Credit: ESO/APEX (MPIfR/ESO/OSO)/T. Stanke et al./Igor Chekalin/Digitized Sky Survey 2
Release Date: May 2, 2012

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #NGC2068 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #AtacamaPathfinderExperiment #APEX #ChajnantorPlateau #AtacamaDesert #Chile #Europe #DSS #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Nebulae Messier 78 & (a bit of) Barnard's Loop in Orion

Nebulae Messier 78 & (a bit of) Barnard's Loop in Orion

Astrophotographer Ian Inverarity: "The M78 nebula is another interesting little thing I have seen in my wider field shots that I wanted to capture! After 3 clear nights in a row, here it is!"

The reflection nebula Messier 78 is a vibrant nursery of star formation enveloped in a shroud of interstellar dust. It lies in the constellation of Orion within our Milky Way galaxy. 

Barnard's Loop (catalogue designation Sh 2-276) is an emission nebula in the constellation of Orion. It is part of the Orion molecular cloud complex. It also contains the dark Horsehead and bright Orion nebulae. The loop takes the form of a large arc centered approximately on the Orion Nebula. The stars within the Orion Nebula are believed to be responsible for ionizing the loop.

Distance: ~1,400 light years

Image details: Takahashi FSQ106N telescope, QHY268M camera, Astronomik R, G & B filters, Warp Astron WD-20 EQ mount, PHD2 and NINA camera and mount control. Stacking and initial processing in APP, final processing in PS. 

Image Credit: Ian Inverarity

Capture Location: Leigh Creek, South Australia.
Release Date: Jan. 2, 2025

#NASA #FoN #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebulae #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #Sh2276 #BarnardsLoop #EmissionNebula #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #Astrophotographer #IanInverarity #Astrophotography #Australia #STEM #Education

Blue Origin's New Glenn Rocket: Preparing for First Launch

Blue Origin's New Glenn Rocket: Preparing for First Launch

New Glenn’s inaugural mission (NG-1) is targeting no earlier than Friday, January 10, 2025, from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The three-hour launch window opens at 1 a.m. EST (0600 UTC).   

"The payload is our Blue Ring Pathfinder. It will test Blue Ring’s core flight, ground systems, and operational capabilities."  

"Our key objective is to reach orbit safely. We know landing the booster on our first try offshore in the Atlantic is ambitious—but we’re going for it." 

“This is our first flight and we’ve prepared rigorously for it,” said Jarrett Jones, SVP, New Glenn. “But no amount of ground testing or mission simulations are a replacement for flying this rocket. It’s time to fly. No matter what happens, we’ll learn, refine, and apply that knowledge to our next launch.” 

"Blue Origin has several New Glenn vehicles in production and a full customer manifest. Customers include NASA, Amazon’s Project Kuiper, AST SpaceMobile, several telecommunications providers, and a mix of U.S. government customers."

About New Glenn 

New Glenn stands more than 320 feet (98 meters) high and features a seven-meter payload fairing, enabling twice the volume of standard five-meter class commercial launch systems. Its reusable first stage aims for a minimum of 25 missions and will land on Jacklyn, a sea-based platform located several hundred miles downrange. Reusability is integral to radically reducing cost-per-launch.   

The vehicle is powered by seven of Blue Origin’s BE-4 engines, the most powerful liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled, oxygen-rich staged combustion engine ever flown. LNG is cleaner-burning and higher-performing than kerosene-based fuels, and the seven BE-4s generate over 3.8 million lbf of thrust. The vehicle’s second stage is powered by two BE-3Us, liquid oxygen (LOX)/liquid hydrogen (LH2) engines designed to together yield over 320,000 lbf of vacuum thrust.   

In addition to the BE-4 and BE-3U, Blue Origin manufactures BE-7 engines for our Blue Moon lunar landers and New Shepard’s BE-3PM engine. 

Learn more: https://www.blueorigin.com/new-glenn

Image Credit: Blue Origin

Release Date: Jan. 6, 2024

#NASA #Space #BlueOrigin #NewGlenn #NewGlennRocket #NG1 #FirstLaunch #CommercialSpace #ArtemisProgram #BlueMoonLanders #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #LC36 #CapeCanaveral #Florida #UnitedStates #Astronaut #JohnGlenn #History #STEM #Education

Russian Progress MS-10 Cargo Rocket Launch to International Space Station

Russian Progress MS-10 Cargo Rocket Launch to International Space Station

Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft & Soyuz rocket launch in Baikonur, Kazakhstan

Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft and Soyuz rocket launch over Kazakhstan

Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft & Soyuz rocket entering Earth orbit

Russian Soyuz rocket first stage re-entering Earth's atmosphere

European Space Agency astronaut and Expedition 57 flight engineer Alexander Gerst of Germany: "Watched a beautiful night launch of the Russian Progress MS-10 cargo vehicle while ISS was flying right above Baikonur (see 2nd photo lower left corner, then upper right of third photo). Destination: us. Reentry of 1st stage visible on last photo."

These are images of the International Space Station view of an uncrewed Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft being launched by a Roscosmos Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to resupply the station on November 16, 2018. This was the 162nd flight of a Roscosmos Progress spacecraft.

The Progress MS-10 spacecraft delivered 2,564 kg of cargo and supplies to Expedition 57 of the International Space Station (ISS). 

Here is a cargo breakdow:

Dry cargo: 1,330 kg

Fuel: 750 kg

Oxygen: 75 kg

Water: 440 kg

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, Alexander Gerst
Capture Date: Nov. 18, 2018

#NASA #ESA #Space #ISS #Science #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #ПрогрессMS10 #ProgressCargoSpacecraft #SoyuzRocketLaunch #Союз #BaikonurCosmodrome #Kazakhstan #Қазақстан #Cosmonauts #Astronaut #AlexanderGerst #Germany #Deutschland #Europe #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Expedition57 #SpaceLaboratory #STEM #Education

Russian Progress MS-10 Cargo Rocket Launch to International Space Station

Russian Progress MS-10 Cargo Rocket Launch to International Space Station

This is a timelapse video International Space Station view of an uncrewed Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft being launched by a Roscosmos Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to resupply the station on November 16, 2018. This was the 162nd flight of a Roscosmos Progress spacecraft.

The Progress MS-10 spacecraft delivered 2,564 kg of cargo and supplies to Expedition 57 of the International Space Station (ISS). 

Here is a cargo breakdow:

Dry cargo: 1,330 kg

Fuel: 750 kg

Oxygen: 75 kg

Water: 440 kg

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Credit: NASA, ISS, Riccardo Rossi/Italian Space and Astronautics Association (ISAA)
Duration: 1 minute, 36 seconds
Release Date: Nov. 23, 2018

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #ПрогрессMS10 #ProgressCargoSpacecraft #SoyuzRocketLaunch #Союз #BaikonurCosmodrome #Kazakhstan #Cosmonauts #Astronauts #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Russia #Россия #Expedition57 #SpaceLaboratory #STEM #Education #HD #Video #ISAA #APoD

China Space Review 2024: Record-Breaking Rocket Launches, Lunar Samples Returned

China Space Review 2024: Record-Breaking Rocket Launches, Lunar Samples Returned

In 2024, China launched a total of 68 carrier rockets, setting a new record. Chang'e 6 brought back the first samples from the far side, south pole of the Moon, and the Shenzhou-19 crew set a new record for spacewalk duration by Chinese astronauts.

Spoiler Alert: Crewed lunar landings are on the way . . .

China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe was launched on May 3, 2024, and carried four international payloads. Its lander-ascender combination touched down at the designated landing area in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on June 2, 2024.

The returner of the Chang'e-6 probe touched down safely on Earth, June 25, 2024, in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. It brought back the world's first samples collected from the Moon's far side south polar region. These are critical for a better understanding of the Moon's origin, its geological history, and its interactions with our planet.

In 2020, Chang'e-5 was the first lunar sample-return mission since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 in 1976. The mission made China the third country to return samples from the Moon after the United States and the Soviet Union.

Video Credit: CNSA/CMSA/CMS Group
Duration: 3 minutes, 46 seconds
Release Date: Dec. 29, 2024

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #China #中国 #Moon #Change6 #嫦娥六号 #LunarSampleReturn  #Shenzhou19 #神舟十九号 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #CSS #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #SpaceLaboratory #CMSA #中国载人航天工程办公室 #CNSA #CLEP #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #STEM #Education #HD #Video

SpaceX Dragon Cargo Spacecraft Undocking | International Space Station

SpaceX Dragon Cargo Spacecraft Undocking | International Space Station

This frame from a time-lapse video captured by NASA astronaut Don Pettit shows the thrusters firing on the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft after it undocked and backed away from the International Space Station's forward port on the Harmony module on December 16, 2024. The orbital outpost was soaring 259 miles above the Pacific Ocean west of the Hawaiian island chain at the time of this photograph.

Filled with nearly 6,000 pounds of crew supplies, science investigations, and equipment, the spacecraft arrived to the orbiting laboratory Nov. 5, 2024, after it launched Nov. 4 on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the agency’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission.

NASA's Commercial Cargo Resupply Program:
https://www.nasa.gov/international-space-station/commercial-resupply/

Expedition 72 Updates:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA Flight Engineers: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Image Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Image Date: Dec. 16, 2024

#NASA #FoN #Space #Science #ISS #Earth #SpaceX #DragonCargoSpacecraft #CRS31 #CommercialCargoProgram #CommercialSpace #Astronauts #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #SpaceLaboratory #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #STEM #Education

Vivid Green Earth Aurora | International Space Station

Vivid Green Earth Aurora | International Space Station

NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 flight engineer Don Pettit has released this short timelapse video of aurora over Earth. Auroras are produced when the Earth's magnetosphere is sufficiently disturbed by the solar wind that the trajectories of charged particles in solar wind and magnetospheric plasma, mainly in the form of electrons and protons, precipitate them into the upper atmosphere (thermosphere/exosphere) due to Earth's magnetic field, where their energy is lost. The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emits light of varying color and complexity. [Wikipedia]

Solid Colored Aurora

Green is common at the upper latitudes, while red is rare. On the other hand, aurora viewed from lower latitudes tend to be red.

Element Emission Colors

Oxygen: The big player in the aurora is oxygen. Oxygen is responsible for the vivid green (wavelength of 557.7 nm) and also for a deep brownish-red (wavelength of 630.0 nm). Pure green and greenish-yellow aurorae result from the excitation of oxygen.

Nitrogen: Nitrogen emits blue (multiple wavelengths) and red light.

Other Gases: Other gases in the atmosphere become excited and emit light, although the wavelengths may be outside of the range of human vision or else too faint to see. Hydrogen and helium, for example, emit blue and purple. Although our eyes cannot see all of these colors, photographic film and digital cameras often record a broader range of hues.

Aurora Colors According to Altitude

Above 150 miles: red, oxygen

Up to 150 miles: green, oxygen

Above 60 miles: purple or violet, nitrogen

Up to 60 miles: blue, nitrogen

NASA - About Aurora

https://www.nasa.gov/science-research/heliophysics/auroras/

https://pwg.gsfc.nasa.gov/polar/EPO/auroral_poster/aurora_all.pdf

The Colors of the Aurora (National Park Service)
https://www.nps.gov/articles/-articles-aps-v8-i1-c9.htm

Expedition 72 Updates:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 72 Crew

Station Commander: Suni Williams
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA Flight Engineers: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Image Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)/Don Pettit
Duration: 8 seconds
Release Date: Jan. 6, 2024

#NASA #FoN #Space #Science #ISS #Sun #Earth #Aurora #AstronautPhotography #Astronauts #DonPettit #SuniWilliams #ButchWilmore #NickHague #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #InternationalCooperation #LongDurationMissions #SpaceLaboratory #HumanSpaceflight #UnitedStates #Expedition72 #STEM #Education #Timelapse #HD #Video

Distant Galaxy LEDA 803211 in Hydra: Ringing in The New Year | Hubble

Distant Galaxy LEDA 803211 in Hydra: Ringing in The New Year | Hubble

This NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope picture shows a tiny patch of sky in the constellation Hydra. The stars and galaxies depicted here span a mind-bending range of distances. Nearest to us in this image are stars within our own Milky Way galaxy that are marked by diffraction spikes. The bright star that sits just at the edge of the prominent bluish galaxy is only 3,230 light-years away, as measured by the European Space Agency's Gaia space observatory.

Behind this star is a galaxy named LEDA 803211. At 622 million light-years distant, this galaxy is close enough that its bright galactic nucleus is clearly visible, as are numerous star clusters scattered around its patchy disc. Many of the more distant galaxies in this frame appear star-like, with no discernible structure, but without the diffraction spikes of a star in our galaxy.

Of all the galaxies in this frame, one pair stands out in particular: a smooth golden galaxy encircled by a nearly complete ring in the upper-right corner of the image. This curious configuration is the result of gravitational lensing, where the light from a distant object is warped and magnified by the gravity of a massive foreground object, like a galaxy or a cluster of galaxies. Einstein predicted the curving of spacetime by matter in his general theory of relativity, and galaxies seemingly stretched into rings like the one in this image are called Einstein rings.

The lensed galaxy, whose image we see as the ring, lies incredibly far away from Earth: we are seeing it as it was when the Universe was just 2.5 billion years old. The galaxy acting as the gravitational lens itself is likely much closer. A nearly perfect alignment of the two galaxies is necessary to give us this rare kind of glimpse into galactic life in the early days of the Universe.

Image Description: Many mostly small, bright objects scattered over a dark background in space. In the top half on the right is an elliptical galaxy, a round light larger than the others, with a slightly warped ring of light around it. In the bottom half there is a barred spiral galaxy, big enough that we can see its bluish arms and its core in detail. Other objects include distant galaxies and nearby stars.

Credit: European Space Agency (ESA)/Hubble & NASA, D. Erb
Release Date: Jan. 6, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Hubble #Space #Science #Galaxies #Galaxy #LEDA803211 #Hydra #Constellation #Astrophysics #GravitationalLensing #EinsteinRings #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #STEM #Education

Reflection Nebula Messier 78 in Orion : 3D Animation | ESO

Reflection Nebula Messier 78 in Orion : 3D Animation | ESO

This is a 3D animation of Messier 78. It provides a closer look at the many strange and fascinating structures hidden in this object.

Distance: 1,400 light years

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/M. Kornmesser

Duration: 1 minute, 31 seconds
Release Date: Feb. 16, 2011

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #3D #Animation #HD #Video

Close-up view: Reflection Nebula Messier 78 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

Close-up view: Reflection Nebula Messier 78 in Orion | MPG/ESO Telescope

In this video, we pan across an image of Messier 78 from the Wide Field Imager camera on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the La Silla Observatory. This provides a closer look at the many strange and fascinating structures hidden in this very detailed image. This color picture was created from many monochrome exposures taken through blue, yellow/green and red filters, supplemented by exposures through a filter that isolates the light from glowing hydrogen gas. The total exposure times were 9, 9, 17.5 and 15.5 minutes per filter, respectively.

Distance: 1,400 light years

Learn about the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope:
https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/Igor Chekalin

Duration: 42 seconds
Release Date: Feb. 16, 2011

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Messier 78: A Reflection Nebula in Orion | Wide-field view | MPG/ESO Telescope

Messier 78: A Reflection Nebula in Orion | Wide-field view | MPG/ESO Telescope

This image of the reflection nebula Messier 78 was captured using the Wide Field Imager camera on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at the La Silla Observatory, Chile. This color picture was created from many monochrome exposures taken through blue, yellow/green and red filters, supplemented by exposures through a filter that isolates light from glowing hydrogen gas. The total exposure times were 9, 9, 17.5 and 15.5 minutes per filter, respectively.

Distance: 1,400 light years

Learn about the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope:
https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Release Date: May 2, 2012

#NASA #FoN #ESO #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarFormation #Nebula #ReflectionNebula #Messier78 #Orion #Constellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #MPGESOTelescope #LaSillaObservatory #Chile #Europe #STEM #Education

Mars Images: Dec. 30-Jan. 3, 2024 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

Mars Images: Dec. 30-Jan. 3, 2024 | NASA's Curiosity & Perseverance Rovers

MSL - sol 4408

Mars 2020 - sol 1377

Mars 2020 - sol 1368

Mars 2020 - sol 1362

Mars 2020 - sol 1374

Support FriendsofNASA.org

Celebrating 12+ Years on Mars (2012-2024)

Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)

Rover Name: Curiosity

Main Job: To determine if Mars was ever habitable to microbial life. 

Launch: Nov. 6, 2011

Landing Date: Aug. 5, 2012, Gale Crater, Mars

Celebrating 3+ Years on Mars

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

Main Job: Seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for return to Earth.

Launch: July 30, 2020    

Landing: Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars

For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit: mars.nasa.gov

Image Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

Processing: Kevin M. Gill

Image Release Dates: Dec. 30-Jan. 3, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #Geology #CuriosityRover #MSL #MountSharp #GaleCrater #PerseveranceRover #Mars2020 #JezeroCrater #Robotics #SpaceTechnology #SpaceEngineering #MSSS #JPL #Caltech #UnitedStates #CitizenScience #KevinGill #STEM #Education