NASA to launch mission to probe Mars atmosphere

NASA to launch mission to probe Mars atmosphere

NASA is set to launch its first mission to examine the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail.

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission (MAVEN). to he launched on November 18 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, will examine specific processes on Mars that led to the loss of much of its atmosphere.

Data and analysis could tell planetary scientists the history of climate change on the Red Planet and provide further information on the history of planetary habitability.

"The MAVEN mission is a significant step towards unraveling the planetary puzzle about Mars" past and present environments." said John Grunsfeld. associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. "The knowledge we gain will build on past and current missions examining Mars and will help inform future missions to send humans to Mars." said Grunsfeld.

Send Names, Poems, Messages to Mars through NASA 2013 Mession

Send Names, Poems, Messages to Mars through NASA 2013 Mession

WANT TO be a pan of space exploration history? NASA is inviting public to submit their names, short poems and personal messages online for a DVD to be carried aboard a spacecraft that will study the Martian atmosphere. The DVD will carry every name submitted. The public also is encouraged to submit a message in the form of a three-line poem. or haiku. NASA said.

However, only three haikus will be selected. The deadline for all submissions is July !. An online public vote to determine the top three messages to be placed on the DVD will begin on July 15. The DVD will be in NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolutiom MARSE) spacecraft, which is scheduled for launch in November this year.

The DVD is part of the mission's 'Going to Mars Campaign' coordinated at the University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics.