Reuters
• Will Dunham
The crew emerged from NASA’s Mars Dune Alpha habitat at Johnson Space Center after 378 days in isolation, completing a simulated mission designed to help prepare for a future human expedition to Mars. The four-person experiment recreated aspects of living and working on the planet without leaving Earth.
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The crew emerged from NASA’s Mars Dune Alpha habitat at Johnson Space Center after 378 days in isolation, completing a simulated mission designed to help prepare for a future human expedition to Mars. The four-person experiment recreated aspects of living and working on the planet without leaving Earth.
Military and civil satellites are observing fireballs as they blaze through Earth's atmosphere, giving scientists data to improve planetary-defense capabilities and understand the impacts of space debris. The observations connect routine atmospheric events with two growing areas of concern: detecting hazardous space rocks and assessing objects that fall back to Earth.
Researchers say the meteorite formed so early that it was on Mars’s surface when liquid water was still present. The finding offers a rare sample from the planet’s ancient past, though the available report provides no further details on its age, composition or implications.
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NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman described the planned architecture and contingencies for Artemis III, a campaign involving multiple vehicles and launches. The outline includes a checkout sequence and prioritizes Blue Origin, but the available account does not specify timing, vehicle roles or contingency details.
NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is descending toward Earth after a failed attempt to save it, with only a short time remaining in orbit. A few fragments are expected to survive atmospheric reentry and fall into the ocean on or about Friday.
Seasonal frost changes the ice visible in a Martian polar crater, highlighting how Mars’ seasons shape its surface. The observation adds to evidence that the planet shares several landforms and weather patterns with Earth, including water ice, dust storms and dust devils.
A report on Ceres suggests that water ice can mask large salt deposits on the dwarf planet’s surface. The finding adds to evidence of complex water-related processes on Ceres, though the supplied article summary provides no details on the deposits’ extent, origin or implications for future exploration.
NASA plans to return astronauts to the lunar surface in 2028, which would be the first crewed landing since Apollo 17 in 1972. The summary provides no mission, vehicle or schedule details beyond that target year.
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