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Khabre desk
Recent reporting, analysis and explainers from the Mars desk.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover measured fine and ultrafine Martian dust clinging to samples of spacesuit materials carried on the rover. The results could help guide spacesuit, habitat and dust-removal designs for future Mars crews.
science
A NASA-funded study dates the Martian meteorite Teghaza 001 to more than 4.1 billion years ago. Its minerals also record alteration by water around that time, offering a rare sample of ancient Martian crust.
science
A NASA-funded study dates the formation of Teghaza 001 to more than 4.1 billion years ago. Its minerals preserve evidence of ancient Martian crust and alteration by water.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover detected fine and ultrafine Martian dust clinging to spacesuit-material samples carried on board. The measurements could help guide ways to limit dust exposure during future crewed missions.
technology
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has highlighted a mission pipeline that includes a 2027 solar radio observatory and Mars helicopter and lunar drone missions targeted for 2028. Its portfolio also spans asteroid detection and Earth science.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover drove 28.10 miles (45.22 kilometres) on Mars by Oct. 11, 2026, surpassing the previous off-world driving record held by Opportunity. NASA says autonomous navigation has enabled the rover to cover more terrain as it investigates Jezero Crater.
science
JAXA’s Martian Moons eXploration mission lifted off on an H3 rocket on 20 October 2026. It is planned to investigate Phobos and Deimos, collect a sample from Phobos and return to Earth.
science
JAXA’s MMX mission is targeting an October 2026 launch to study Mars’ moons and return a sample from Phobos. NASA is contributing a composition-measuring instrument, sampler technology, communications support and scientific expertise.
science
NASA is contributing a science instrument, sample-collection technology and communications support to JAXA’s MMX mission to study Mars’ moons and return a sample from Phobos. The spacecraft is targeting launch on Oct. 19, 2026, with sample return planned for 2031.
science
NASA says Perseverance drove 45.22 kilometres on Mars by Oct. 11, 2026, surpassing the previous off-world distance record held by Opportunity. The rover uses autonomous navigation for more than 90% of its total driving distance.
technology
NASA’s Perseverance rover has driven 45.22 kilometres on Mars, surpassing the previous off-world distance record held by Opportunity. NASA says autonomous navigation has helped Perseverance cover more than 90% of its total distance.
technology
NASA’s Perseverance rover reached 45.22 kilometres driven on Mars on 11 October 2026, passing the record held by Opportunity. JPL credits the rover’s autonomous navigation with helping it cover the distance while exploring Jezero Crater.
science
NASA’s Curiosity rover captured a six-image dawn panorama of wind-carved cliffs on Mount Sharp. Mission scientists hope to reach the yardangs in 2027 and investigate how the distinctive layer formed.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover found evidence that water altered rocks in Mars’ Jezero Crater on at least three separate occasions. The sequence includes carbon-dioxide-rich groundwater, a possible lake-related episode and later hot underground water.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover found that the Margin Unit in Jezero Crater records at least three separate episodes of water-rock interaction, including a later episode involving heated underground water. The findings revise the picture of how water moved through early Mars.
science
NASA’s Perseverance rover captured Earth passing behind Phobos from the surface of Mars on July 2, 2026. The observation is the first of its kind, showing Earth briefly disappearing behind an object as seen from another planet.
science
NASA’s Curiosity rover has discovered an unusually extensive field of polygonal fractures in a Martian valley. Scientists are studying whether the honeycomb-like patterns formed through drying, temperature changes or processes that compressed ancient sediments.
technology
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has tested a lightweight, fabric-based Vivaldi antenna for the SkyFall Mars helicopters’ ground-penetrating radar. The prototype survived simulated temperature swings and 200 Mars landings without losing signal performance, but it still needs further testing before flight qualification.
science
A Nature Astronomy Comment reports that surveyed astrobiologists were more persuaded by evidence linked to Mars’s Cheyava Falls than by evidence associated with exoplanet K2-18 b.