Opportunity begins studies of Endeavour crater
Posted: Fri, Sep 2, 2011, 2:07 PM ET (1807 GMT)
NASA's long-lived Mars rover Opportunity has started studying a large crater it recently reached, providing scientists with new insights into the planet. Among the first rocks examined by Opportunity at the rim of crater Endeavour is one scientists said is different from any other examined to date: a volcanic rock with much higher concentrations of zinc and bromine than previously seen in other rocks. Scientists are hopeful studies of the crater, much larger than previous ones visited by the rover, will provide new clues into the early history of the planet, an era when it was warmer and may have had liquid water on its surface. Opportunity, which landed on Mars in January 2004, has operated on Mars 30 times longer than originally planned and remains in good condition.
NASA's long-lived Mars rover Opportunity has started studying a large crater it recently reached, providing scientists with new insights into the planet. Among the first rocks examined by Opportunity at the rim of crater Endeavour is one scientists said is different from any other examined to date: a volcanic rock with much higher concentrations of zinc and bromine than previously seen in other rocks. Scientists are hopeful studies of the crater, much larger than previous ones visited by the rover, will provide new clues into the early history of the planet, an era when it was warmer and may have had liquid water on its surface. Opportunity, which landed on Mars in January 2004, has operated on Mars 30 times longer than originally planned and remains in good condition.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, June 7
EUSPA launches new EU Space Market Report
EUSPA — 8:20 am ET (1220 GMT) RIDE! Secures One Ton of capacity on SEOPS Waymaker Rideshare Program with Inaugural Mission in 2028
Ride — 8:17 am ET (1217 GMT) JAL Group Launches “ARGO PROJECT,” the World’s First Lunar Transport Service by an Airline
ispace — 8:17 am ET (1217 GMT) Astrotech to Pursue Strategic Lunar Industrial Platform Targeting Resource Extraction, Autonomous Infrastructure, and Future Moon-Based Semiconductor and Quantum Computing Applications
Astrotech — 8:13 am ET (1213 GMT) IHI constellation plan gathers pace with initial data acquisition
IHI Aerospace — 8:10 am ET (1210 GMT) |
