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Mars

Organic Compounds on Mars

Mars Curiosity Rover

by Dr. Lisa Will, Resident Astronomer at the Fleet Science Center

The latest news from Mars Curiosity is awesome!

On Thursday, June 7, 2018, NASA announced the Mars Curiosity rover discovered evidence of organic compounds in the soil of Mars and methane in the Martian atmosphere. The Curiosity rover is a mobile chemistry laboratory, capable of measuring chemicals in the soil and atmosphere. It’s been doing measurements in Gale Crater since August 2012.

A few things to note:

Best View of Mars in a Decade

Mars, photo by NASA
During the last weeks of May and the first weeks of June, Mars will be bright and quite noticeable in the evening and early morning sky. In fact, this will likely be the best view you'll have of the planet in a decade! The last time Mars was this bright was during the the Martian opposition of November 2005.
 

Five Planets Visible in the Morning Sky

Five planets visible in the night sky.

By Dr. Lisa Will, Resident Astronomer of the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center

For the first time in a decade, five planets are visible with the naked eye at the same time. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will be together in the pre-dawn sky starting Wednesday, January 20, 2016.

Orion's Successful Launch

Orion launch

Watch the video here!

Orion's launch was scrubbed on Thursday, but Friday morning, Dec. 5, saw a successful launch, ushering in a new era of space exploration. Click the link above to see the launch footage.

Mars To Encounter Comet Siding Spring

By Dr. Lisa Will
 
This Sunday, October 19, Mars will have a close encounter with Comet Siding Spring.
 
And by close, I mean close!
 
Comet Siding Spring, also known as C/2013 A1, will be approximately 82,000 miles away from Mars at its closest approach. That might not seem like much, but to give you a sense of scale that is equivalent to about one-third the distance between the Earth and the Moon!
 

Astronomy

Curiosity Mars Rover

Over 500 attendees gathered to celebrate the Curiosity Mars Rover Landing at the Fleet Science Center. For more information on Curiosity, click here.

Astronomy Resources

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