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March 16, 2016

How the ExoMars mission could sniff out life on Mars
London, UK (The Conversation) Mar 16, 2016
"It (could be) life Jim, but (perhaps) not as we know it." This is not just a sci-fi catchphrase, but also something some planetary scientists have uttered in response to the discovery of methane in Mars' atmosphere. That's right - scientists believe that some kind of past or present microbial lifeform on Mars could have produced the methane. While it is far from the only possible explanation, it is actually so plausible that a special mission is being sent there to find out. The first part of wha ... read more

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ExoMars on its way to solve the Red Planet's mysteries The first of two joint ESA-Roscosmos missions to Mars has begun a seven-month journey to the Red Planet, where it will address unsolved mysteries of the planet's atmosphere that could indicate prese ... more		Super elastic electroluminescent 'skin' will soon create mood robots Imagine a health care robot that could display the patient's temperature and pulse, and even reacts to a patient's mood. It sounds futuristic, but a team of Cornell graduate students - led by Rob Sh ... more		ExoMars 2016 - The heat is on Airbus Defence and Space, the world number two in space technologies, has designed and built the two heat shields which will enable the Schiaparelli capsule of the ExoMars 2016 mission to withstand ... more
				NASA Selects Scientists for Mars Rover Research Projects NASA has selected 28 researchers as participating scientists for the Curiosity Mars rover mission, including six newcomers to the rover's science team. The six new additions work in Alabama, Colorad ... more		Rocket blasts off on Russia-Europe mission seeking life on Mars Two robotic spacecraft on Monday began a seven-month journey to Mars as part of a European-Russian unmanned space mission to sniff out leads to life on the Red Planet. ... more

What's Eating at Pluto? Far in the western hemisphere, scientists on NASA's New Horizons mission have discovered what looks like a giant "bite mark" on Pluto's surface. They suspect it may be caused by a process known as s ... more		Opportunity seeking clay minerals on steeper slopes Opportunity is exploring steep outcrops within Marathon Valley on the rim of Endeavour crater. The rover is up on the very steep slopes of 'Knudsen Ridge'. The objective is to examine specific ... more		Sidekick autonomy software guides YFQ-42A test mission for CCA program Infleqtion lists shares on NYSE as neutral atom quantum firm Top Chinese gaming companies continue to challenge		Europe's New Mars Mission Bringing NASA Radios Along Two NASA radios aboard the European Space Agency's Mars mission are engineered to provide communication relay service for rovers and landers on Mars. ESA's ExoMars 2016 mission, combining the Trace ... more
				Close comet flyby threw Mars' magnetic field into chaos Just weeks before the historic encounter of comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) with Mars in October 2014, NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft entered orbit around the Red P ... more		Permanent Lunar Colony Possible in 10 Years Living on the Moon may become a reality sooner than anticipated as astrophysicists have assessed that a permanent lunar base is logistically feasible for humans - and could be built in less than a d ... more

Military Network Modernization 2016 - Washington DC - April 25-27

Space Tech Expo - Design - Build - Test - Pasadena CA - May 24-26, 2016

Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison & Memory Foam Mattress Review

Coming to a hotel near you: the robot humanoid receptionist In a hotel not in a galaxy far, far away, a robot bids you welcome as you pull into the driveway. ... more		Life's Building Blocks Form In Replicated Deep Sea Vents Chimney-like mineral structures on the seafloor could have helped create the RNA molecules that gave rise to life on Earth and hold promise to the emergence of life on distant planets. Scientists th ... more		Solar-driven ionosphere charges may nudge stressed faults toward rupture Stable black carbon in mangrove soils boosts coastal climate role Low crystallinity iron minerals show promise for chromium cleanup and carbon storage		Europe, Russia embark on search for life on Mars Europe and Russia are set to launch an unmanned spacecraft Monday to smell Mars' atmosphere for gassy evidence that life once existed on the Red Planet, or may do so still. ... more
Star eruptions create and scatter elements with Earth-like composition Observations made with NASA's flying observatory, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) indicate that nova eruptions create elements that can form rocky planets, much like Ear ... more		NASA Glenn technology pumps hope into broken hearts Dr. Mark Rodefeld knows the hearts of children. As a pediatric heart surgeon at Indiana University, he's spent decades fixing them. One particular heart problem has consumed much of his research and ... more		Astronomers discover two new 'hot Jupiter' exoplanets A team of Chilean astronomers have identified two new "hot Jupiter" exoplanets using data collected by NASA's Kepler probe. ... more		NASA's K2 mission: Kepler second chance to shine The engineers huddled around a telemetry screen, and the mood was tense. They were watching streams of data from a crippled spacecraft more than 50 million miles away - so far that even at the speed ... more

	UA's Space Expertise Seen as Key for US Security With its recently launched research initiative focused on space object behavioral sciences, the University of Arizona is uniquely positioned at the forefront of a field that has implications for nat ... more		Some assembly required to boost robot ratings Robot makers may want to follow Ikea's strategy for customer satisfaction and give people a chance to partially assemble their new robots to ease acceptance of the devices, according to Penn State r ... more

AALTO plans Zephyr stratospheric hub in northern Australia and seeks local payload partners

Ancient guano drove Chincha coastal power

UAH lands first DARPA award for biological sciences department

NIST's internet time service serves the world		Amputee feels texture with a bionic fingertip		China's ambition after space station		NASA Announces Winning Concepts to Further its Journey to Mars		NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft in thermal vacuum testing
NASA targets May 2018 launch of Mars InSight mission		Mercury's mysterious 'darkness' revealed		Sharpest view ever of dusty disc around aging star		Ten Years of Discovery by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter		Mission to Mars brings Russia and Europe together

Intensive training for Mars voyage

Close comet flyby threw Mars' magnetic field into chaos

Mars robot launch now scheduled for May 2018: NASA

In emergencies, should you trust a robot

Proton-M carrier rocket assembled ahead of Mars Mission

Dawn's First Year at Ceres: A Mountain Emerges

New photos show 'magic island' on Saturn's moon

Sky is the limit for China's national strategy

Scientists explain why Mercury's surface is so dark

Engineered swarmbots rely on peers for survival

Watch Google's AlphaGo computer take on world's best Go player

Multi-scale simulations solve a plasma turbulence mystery

Hundred million degree fluid key to fusion

100 million-degree fluid essential to fusion

Plasma processing technique takes SNS accelerator to new energy highs

Evidence found for unstable heavy element at solar system formation

Aim Higher: China Plans to Send Rover to Mars in 2020

China's lunar probe sets record for longest stay

Japan 'robo' dogs eyed for quake rescue missions

Methane Snow on Pluto's Peaks

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