Curiosity’s detection of the gas, if atmospheric, could be an indicator of life on the Red Planet. But skeptics say further work is needed to rule out the rover itself as the source of the methane.
Mars
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Young Rivers on a Martian Volcano Reveal Insights into the Amazonian Climate
A comprehensive inventory of rivers on Alba Mons on Mars reveals a prolonged history of erosion and development into mature drainage networks during the Amazonian, with contributions of rainfall and snow melt.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Geophysics Sheds Light on Early Martian Water and Habitability
A new study uses inversions of orbital gravity and magnetic field data to argue for the presence of ancient, long-lasting hydrothermal systems on Mars.
Posted inResearch & Developments
NASA Science Faces an “Extinction-Level Event” with Trump Draft Budget Proposal
The initial draft of President Donald Trump’s budget request proposes devastating cuts to NASA’s science research, future space missions, and field centers.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Martian Magmas Live Long and Prosper
The depths, longevity, and potential to generate silicic compositions of magma chambers are linked to crustal temperature, which varies across Mars and over its geological history.
Posted inNews
Salt May Be Key to Martian Mudflows
Mars probably has mud volcanoes, and salt might be the ingredient that keeps the flow going.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Come on Feel the Noise: Machine Learning for Seismic-Wind Mapping on Mars
Wind vibrations measured by NASA’s InSight mission seismometer are mapped into wind speed and direction to detect major annual weather patterns and open new possibilities for planetary instrumentation.
Posted inNews
Buried Sediments Point to an Ancient Ocean on Mars
Ground-penetrating radar data collected by the Zhurong rover reveal gently sloping sediments in Mars’s northern lowlands that hint at a shoreline.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Martian Dust Will Be a Health Hazard for Astronauts
Prolonged exposure to the Red Planet’s regolith, which contains carcinogens and toxic metals, could pose respiratory threats and increase chronic disease risk.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Explaining Mars’ Mysteriously Magnetic Crust
Fluid-rock interactions on ancient Mars may have produced abundant magnetic minerals that preserved unusually intense records of the planet’s now-extinct magnetic field.