A volcanically heated Costa Rican lake hosts only one type of organism, suggesting that its Mars-like environment is just barely capable of supporting life.
Mars
Posted inNews
New Lander en Route to Probe the Red Planet’s Interior
The Mars InSight mission aims to answer key planetary science questions about seismicity, meteorite impacts, and the formation of rocky planets.
Posted inNews
History of Mars’s Water, Seen Through the Lens of Gale Crater
Research uncovers more of Mars’s past, when flowing water may have been transient before eventually disappearing.
Posted inNews
Homemade “Spatter Bombs” Can Reveal Volcanic Secrets
Researchers use trial and error to develop a technique to create volcanic lava bombs.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Long Term Preservation of Subsurface Ice on Mars
Layered-ejecta craters on Mars that are associated with impacts into rock mixed with volatiles have been formed throughout the planet’s history indicating the long-term preservation of subsurface ice.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
History of Water on Mars’s Surface Is Longer Than We Thought
Curiosity’s two-step heating experiment of mudstone at Gale crater reveals minerals that formed in the presence of water less than 3 billion years ago.
Posted inNews
Tests Indicate Which Edible Plants Could Thrive on Mars
An undergraduate experiment grew vegetables and herbs in simulated Martian soil under Mars-like reduced daylight. The tasty results suggest that Mars colonists could farm their own produce.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Where the Solar Wind Meets Mars
A comprehensive look at how the solar wind is diverted around Mars, including the relative strength of the three biggest forces at work in this region.
Posted inNews
Four Planetary Landscapes That Scientists Can’t Explain
These are just a handful of the hundreds of mysterious features across our solar neighborhood that beg to be studied closer.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Where Did the Water Go on Mars?
Primordial solar storm conditions are believed to have significantly enhanced the loss of water and other atmospheric volatiles in Mars’ history.