Mars – Page 6 – My WordPress Site

Proof of life module physical hardware on rover chassis-- astro-ph.EP

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Mars, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors

Tricorder Tech: Autonomous Mars Rover Module for Soil Sampling and Life Component Analysis

by Keith CowingJanuary 27, 2026January 27, 2026

Schematic drawing of a Fiersviridae (formely Leviviridae) virion (cross section and side view) ViralZone, SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics: Levivirus CC BY 4.0 via Wikipedia

Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Mars, Microbiology & Virology

Regolith as a Refuge: Differential Survival of Bacteriophage Qβ in Mars-Analog Environments

by Keith CowingJanuary 19, 2026January 19, 2026

(a,b) An example of the transmittance spectra taken with the full-scan mode of the SO channel of TGO/NOMAD. (c,d) An example of the transmittance spectra taken with the full-scan mode of the UVIS channel. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, TRAPPIST-1

Anatomy Of Empirical Transit Spectra Of Mars Based On TGO/NOMAD

by Keith CowingJanuary 16, 2026January 16, 2026

A Tributary channels identified in the northward facing promontory of the Southeast Coprates Chasma and Strahler orders characterizing the geometry of the channel networks in the various drainage basins. B Topographic cross-section drawn from elevation data that is extracted from the DEM along the red line across the promontory. The downward arrows indicate the depth of the local bedrock incision. SFD = scarp-fronted deposit. -- NPJ

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Mars, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Mars Was Half Covered By An Ocean

by Keith CowingJanuary 15, 2026January 15, 2026

3D rendering of meteorite and clasts. a) 3D rendering of the attenuation tomograms cut in half in z to show two H-Fe-ox clasts, showing neutron attenuation on the left and X-ray attenuation on the right. White means high attenuation, dark means low attenuation. b) 3D rendering of segmented phases throughout the meteorite, with H-rich Fe-oxyhydroxides in blue and H-poor Fe-Ti oxides in red. c) 3D rendering of the three biggest H-Fe-ox clasts. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Direct Detection Of Hydrogen Reveals A New Macroscopic Crustal Water Reservoir On Early Mars

by Keith CowingJanuary 15, 2026January 15, 2026

The period of limit cycle events (color contours) depends on planetary obliquity and the magnitude of any additional greenhouse gas warming Fadd. Limit cycling is assumed to halt when CO2 condensation occurs. At high obliquity and large additional greenhouse forcing, climate remains warm and limit cycles do not occur. Calculations are performed at an early Earth solar constant of S/S 0 = 0.7 for a 1 bar N2 terrestrial planet atmosphere with an active carbonate-silicate cycle, 14% present-day volcanic outgassing rates, and a land-ocean distribution that corresponds to present Earth. -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Mars

Limit Cycles And The Climate History Of Mars

by Keith CowingJanuary 14, 2026January 14, 2026

Earth and Mars - Astrobiology.com

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Mars

Mars Has A Large Impact On Earth’s Climate

by Keith CowingJanuary 13, 2026

Small lakes on ancient Mars may have remained liquid for decades, even with average air temperatures well below freezing. -- Rice University

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mars

Thin Ice May Have Protected Lake Water On Frozen Mars

by Keith CowingJanuary 6, 2026January 6, 2026

These sulfur crystals were found inside a rock after NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover happened to drive over it and crush it on May 30, 2024, the 4,200th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Mars Curiosity Rover Observes Sulfur Crystals

by Keith CowingJanuary 5, 2026January 2, 2026

The phylogenetic tree showed the amino acid of xoxF and mxaF genes in MAGs from lava tubes, Haikou City, Hainan Province. The blue words indicated the acquired MAGs in this study. -- JGR Planets via x-mol.net

Analog Studies, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains & Lava Tubes, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Terraforming & Geoengineering

Microbial Diversity and Metabolic Adaptations in Mars‐Analog Lava Tubes

by Keith CowingJanuary 3, 2026January 2, 2026