http://www.mail.com/subjects/24338-planets.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.28/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/24338-planets.html http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2098776-curiosity-rover-drills-second-martian-rock.html PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — NASA's Curiosity rover drills again. The space agency said Monday that Curiosity has bored a hole in a second rock and will transfer a pinch of powder to its onboard laboratories later this week for analysis. Sunday's drill was the first major activity by Curiosity since it emerged from a monthlong hiatus. The latest drill site was... Mon, 20 May 2013 21:08:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2098776-curiosity-rover-drills-second-martian-rock.html 2013-05-20T21:08:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2088320-nasa-crafts-planet-hunting-days-numbered.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — NASA's planet-hunting Kepler telescope is broken, potentially jeopardizing the search for other worlds where life could exist outside our solar system. If engineers can't find a fix, the failure could mean an end to the $600 million mission's search, although the space agency wasn't ready to call it quits Wednesday. The telescope has di... Thu, 16 May 2013 01:38:20 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2088320-nasa-crafts-planet-hunting-days-numbered.html 2013-05-16T01:38:20Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2028902-nasa-sees-distant-planets-that-ideal-life.html WASHINGTON (AP) — NASA's planet-hunting telescope has discovered two planets that seem like ideal places for some sort of life to flourish. And they are just the right size and in just the right place. One is toasty, the other nippy. The distant duo are the best candidates for habitable planets that astronomers have found so far, said William Borucki, the... Thu, 18 Apr 2013 21:30:15 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2028902-nasa-sees-distant-planets-that-ideal-life.html 2013-04-18T21:30:15Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2014026-soviet-mars-spacecraft-spotted-photos.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Space fans from Russia scanning NASA images have spotted what may be a Soviet spacecraft that landed on Mars in 1971 and then mysteriously stopped working. Photos taken by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter circling the red planet pointed to what may be the Mars 3 lander along with its parachute, heat shield and other hardware that it j... Thu, 11 Apr 2013 21:00:24 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/2014026-soviet-mars-spacecraft-spotted-photos.html 2013-04-11T21:00:24Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1997396-mars-missions-scaled-april-sun.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — It's the Martian version of spring break: Curiosity and Opportunity, along with their spacecraft friends circling overhead, will take it easy this month because of the sun's interference. For much of April, the sun blocks the line of sight between Earth and Mars. This celestial alignment — called a Mars solar conjunction — makes it diff... Thu, 04 Apr 2013 08:30:26 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1997396-mars-missions-scaled-april-sun.html 2013-04-04T08:30:26Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1978828-mars-rover-action-computer-problems.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Mars rover Curiosity is humming again after being sidelined by back-to-back computer problems. The six-wheel rover fired up its onboard laboratories and analyzed a pinch of rock dust over the weekend. It had been unable to perform science experiments since late last month after experiencing a computer memory problem. ... Mon, 25 Mar 2013 22:34:52 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1978828-mars-rover-action-computer-problems.html 2013-03-25T22:34:52Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1962792-mars-rover-curiosity-stands-problem.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — After recovering from a computer problem, the Mars rover Curiosity is sidelined again, further delaying the restart of science experiments. The latest complication occurred over the weekend when the six-wheel rover entered safe mode after experiencing a software file error. Curiosity remained in contact with ground controllers, but it c... Tue, 19 Mar 2013 02:23:43 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1962792-mars-rover-curiosity-stands-problem.html 2013-03-19T02:23:43Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1954526-esa-roscosmos-sign-deal-mars-exploration.html BERLIN (AP) — The European Space Agency says it has signed an agreement with its Russian counterpart to work together toward two missions to Mars. The partnership comes after NASA pulled out of the ExoMars program with ESA last year due to budget cuts. ESA said in a statement Thursday that it and Roscomos aim to launch missions in 2016 and 2018 to try to ... Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:44:52 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1954526-esa-roscosmos-sign-deal-mars-exploration.html 2013-03-14T14:44:52Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1948170-mars-rover-planet-supported-life.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Drilling into a rock near its landing spot, the Curiosity rover has answered a key question about Mars: The red planet long ago harbored some of the ingredients needed for primitive life to thrive. Topping the list is evidence of water and basic elements that teeny organisms could feed on, scientists said Tuesday. "We have found a habit... Tue, 12 Mar 2013 23:05:34 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1948170-mars-rover-planet-supported-life.html 2013-03-12T23:05:34Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1938914-radar-reveals-apparent-buried-channels-mars.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — The face of Mars is dotted with a maze of channels, pointing to possible ancient megaflood episodes. Now scientists peering below the surface have uncovered the first evidence of underground channels apparently created by flooding — a finding that's expected to further illuminate the role of water in Mars' history. U... Thu, 07 Mar 2013 19:48:28 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1938914-radar-reveals-apparent-buried-channels-mars.html 2013-03-07T19:48:28Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1936392-curiosity-sleeps-solar-blast-races-toward-mars.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Curiosity hunkered down after the sun unleashed a blast that raced toward Mars. While the hardy rover was designed to withstand punishing space weather, its handlers decided to power it down as a precaution since it suffered a recent computer problem. "We're being more careful," project manager Richard Cook of the NASA Jet Propulsion La... Thu, 07 Mar 2013 09:12:06 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1936392-curiosity-sleeps-solar-blast-races-toward-mars.html 2013-03-07T09:12:06Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1926054-nasa-mars-rover-safe-mode-science-halted.html PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Science experiments by the NASA Mars rover Curiosity have been put on hold as engineers troubleshoot a problem with its computer. NASA says the car-size rover is in "safe mode." In this state, Curiosity suspends science activities but is still in contact with Earth. Engineers discovered a problem with Curiosity's flash memory earli... Fri, 01 Mar 2013 23:15:02 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1926054-nasa-mars-rover-safe-mode-science-halted.html 2013-03-01T23:15:02Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1919428-tycoon-wants-to-send-married-couple-mars-flyby.html WASHINGTON (AP) — It's a road trip that could test the best of marriages: Mars. A tycoon announced plans Wednesday to send a middle-aged couple on a privately built spaceship to slingshot around the red planet and come back home, hopefully with their bodies and marriage in one piece after 501 days of no-escape togetherness in a cramped capsule half the si... Wed, 27 Feb 2013 23:08:13 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1919428-tycoon-wants-to-send-married-couple-mars-flyby.html 2013-02-27T23:08:13Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1915246-nasa-mars-rover-analyzing-powder-drilled-rock.html PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — The Mars rover Curiosity has successfully transferred a pinch of rock dust to its onboard laboratories for inspection, two weeks after drilling into its first rock. NASA said Monday it received confirmation of the deliveries over the weekend. Scientists will spend the next several weeks studying the rock's chemical and mineral make... Tue, 26 Feb 2013 00:04:54 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1915246-nasa-mars-rover-analyzing-powder-drilled-rock.html 2013-02-26T00:04:54Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1914550-capt-kirks-vulcan-entry-wins-pluto-moons-contest.html CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — "Star Trek" fans, rejoice. An online vote to name Pluto's two newest, itty-bitty moons is over. And No. 1 is Vulcan, a name suggested by actor William Shatner, who played Capt. Kirk in the original "Star Trek" TV series. Vulcan snared nearly 200,000 votes among the more than 450,000 cast during the two-week contest, which ended... Mon, 25 Feb 2013 22:28:44 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1914550-capt-kirks-vulcan-entry-wins-pluto-moons-contest.html 2013-02-25T22:28:44Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1904064-nasa-rover-preps-1st-test-drilled-mars-rock.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Fresh off drilling into a rock for the first time, the Mars rover Curiosity is prepping for the next step: dissecting the pulverized rock to determine what it's made of. Images beamed back to Earth on Wednesday showed a tablespoon of gray powder in Curiosity's scoop, giving scientists their first glimpse of the sample collected during t... Wed, 20 Feb 2013 23:08:32 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1904064-nasa-rover-preps-1st-test-drilled-mars-rock.html 2013-02-20T23:08:32Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1903620-smallest-planet-yet-solar-system.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Astronomers searching for planets outside our solar system have discovered the tiniest one yet — one that's about the size of our moon. But hunters for life in the universe will need to poke elsewhere. The new world orbits too close to its sun-like star and is too sizzling to support life. Its surface temperature is an estimated 700 de... Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:38:53 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1903620-smallest-planet-yet-solar-system.html 2013-02-20T18:38:53Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1895684-2-space-rocks-hours-apart-point-up-danger.html CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A space rock even bigger than the meteor that exploded like an atom bomb over Russia could drop out of the sky unannounced at any time and wreak havoc on a city. And Hollywood to the contrary, there isn't much the world's scientists and generals can do about it. But some former astronauts want to give the world a fighting chanc... Fri, 15 Feb 2013 23:16:46 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1895684-2-space-rocks-hours-apart-point-up-danger.html 2013-02-15T23:16:46Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1879944-curiosity-rover-completes-1st-drill-mars-rock.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a Mars first, the Curiosity rover drilled into a rock and prepared to dump an aspirin-sized pinch of powder into its onboard laboratories for closer inspection. The feat marked yet another milestone for the car-size rover, which landed last summer to much fanfare on an ambitious hunt to determine whether environmental conditions were... Sat, 09 Feb 2013 17:24:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1879944-curiosity-rover-completes-1st-drill-mars-rock.html 2013-02-09T17:24:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1872778-closest-earth-like-planet-stroll-park.html CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Earth-like worlds may be closer and more plentiful than anyone imagined. Astronomers reported Wednesday that the nearest Earth-like planet may be just 13 light-years away — or some 77 trillion miles. That planet hasn't been found yet, but should be there based on the team's study of red dwarf stars. Galactic... Wed, 06 Feb 2013 19:06:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1872778-closest-earth-like-planet-stroll-park.html 2013-02-06T19:06:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1835672-quick-hits-moments-obama-inaugural.html WASHINGTON (AP) — A wistful moment for President Barack Obama came shortly after his public swearing-in ceremony. As he began walking off the inaugural platform to go into the U.S. Capitol for the traditional luncheon with lawmakers and other dignitaries, Obama stopped and turned around to look at the scene on the National Mall, filled with hundreds of th... Mon, 21 Jan 2013 21:58:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1835672-quick-hits-moments-obama-inaugural.html 2013-01-21T21:58:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1834388-nasas-older-mars-rover-notches-milestone.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Opportunity, NASA's other Mars rover, has tooled around the red planet for so long it's easy to forget it's still alive. Some 5,000 miles away from the limelight surrounding Curiosity's every move, Opportunity this week quietly embarks on its tenth year of exploration — a sweet milestone since it was only tasked to work for three months... Mon, 21 Jan 2013 08:17:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1834388-nasas-older-mars-rover-notches-milestone.html 2013-01-21T08:17:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1825858-space-station-to-18-balloon-like-room.html LAS VEGAS (AP) — NASA is partnering with a commercial space company in a bid to replace the cumbersome "metal cans" that now serve as astronauts' homes in space with inflatable bounce-house-like habitats that can be deployed on the cheap. A $17.8 million test project will send to the International Space Station an inflatable room that can be compressed in... Thu, 17 Jan 2013 09:23:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1825858-space-station-to-18-balloon-like-room.html 2013-01-17T09:23:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1822566-nasas-curiosity-rover-readying-to-drill-mars.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scientists have zeroed in on a Martian target for the Curiosity rover to drill into: A rock outcrop as flat as a pool table that's expected to yield fresh insight into the red planet's history. Running a tad behind schedule, Curiosity was due to arrive at the site in the next several days. After an inspection of the surroundings, the ca... Tue, 15 Jan 2013 20:24:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1822566-nasas-curiosity-rover-readying-to-drill-mars.html 2013-01-15T20:24:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1804434-study-billions-earth-size-planets-milky-way.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Our Milky Way is home to at least 17 billion planets that are similar in size to Earth, a new estimate suggests. That's more than two Earth-size planets for every person on the globe. Just how many are located in the sweet spot where water could exist is "simply too early to call," said Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center... Mon, 07 Jan 2013 20:27:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1804434-study-billions-earth-size-planets-milky-way.html 2013-01-07T20:27:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1798114-martian-rock-sahara-desert-unlike.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scientists are abuzz about a coal-colored rock from Mars that landed in the Sahara desert: A yearlong analysis revealed it's quite different from other Martian meteorites. Not only is it older than most, it also contains more water, tests showed. The baseball-size meteorite, estimated to be 2 billion years old, is strikingly similar to ... Thu, 03 Jan 2013 20:25:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1798114-martian-rock-sahara-desert-unlike.html 2013-01-03T20:25:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1791014-road-trip-tap-nasas-mars-rover-year.html PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Since captivating the world with its acrobatic landing, the Mars rover Curiosity has fallen into a rhythm: Drive, snap pictures, zap at boulders, scoop up dirt. Repeat. Topping its to-do list in the new year: Set off toward a Martian mountain — a trek that will take up a good chunk of the year. The original itinerary called for sta... Mon, 31 Dec 2012 18:12:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1791014-road-trip-tap-nasas-mars-rover-year.html 2012-12-31T18:12:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1745188-expert-panel-nasa-lost-space-goal.html WASHINGTON (AP) — NASA, the agency that epitomized the "Right Stuff," seems lost in space and doesn't have a clear sense of where it is going, an independent panel of science and engineering experts said in a stinging report Wednesday. The one place the White House wants to send astronauts — an asteroid — doesn't seem to be getting the engines firing at... Wed, 05 Dec 2012 22:16:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1745188-expert-panel-nasa-lost-space-goal.html 2012-12-05T22:16:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1743188-mars-redux-nasa-to-launch-curiosity-like-rover.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — If you thought NASA's latest Mars landing was a nail-biter, get ready for a sequel. The space agency on Tuesday announced plans to launch another mega-rover to the red planet in 2020 that will be modeled after the wildly popular Curiosity. To keep costs down, engineers will borrow Curiosity's blueprints, recycle spare parts where possib... Wed, 05 Dec 2012 00:50:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1743188-mars-redux-nasa-to-launch-curiosity-like-rover.html 2012-12-05T00:50:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742808-rover-opportunity-clay-rich-site-mars.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — After rolling around the Martian plains for more than eight years, the Opportunity rover finally found a spot believed to be rich in clay minerals, scientists said Tuesday. Orbiting spacecraft previously detected the presence of clay-bearing deposits at a huge crater in Mars' southern hemisphere. Using that information as a guide, the s... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 20:13:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742808-rover-opportunity-clay-rich-site-mars.html 2012-12-04T20:13:00Z