Mars

NASA and DLR have officially called it quits on InSight's "mole." The instrument was designed to drill deep into the Martian soil, but soon hit a snag and has now been abandoned after almost two years of troubleshooting failed to resolve the issue.

Space exploration in 2021 will see some major milestones to look forward to. From maiden flights to fiery endings, long-awaited launches to history-making first steps, here are some of the biggest upcoming events in space exploration this year.

It's been remarkable year for space exploration, marked by a line up of ambitious new interplanetary missions, industry firsts, and the reemergence of the US in the field of human spaceflight.

Weight is a premium on space launches, so the less we have to take with us, the better. Now engineers have developed a new electrolysis device that may be able to convert very salty Martian water into breathable oxygen and hydrogen for fuel.

When NASA’s Perseverance rover touches down in Jezero Crater on February 18, 2021, it will carry with it an experiment that will attempt to transform carbon dioxide into oxygen – a gas that can be used to create rocket fuel.

Mars may be incredibly dry and dusty today, but evidence is piling up that it was once a watery world. Now the Curiosity rover has found signs of an ancient flood of biblical proportions, most likely kicked off by a climate-changing asteroid impact.

An independent review board has issued a report saying that NASA is capable of carrying out its Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign that involves a series of missions to collect pristine samples from the Red Planet and return them to Earth.

NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover has officially reached the halfway mark in its marathon journey to the Red Planet. The robotic explorer is set to rendezvous with Mars and attempt a perilous descent through the thin atmosphere in February 2021.

Having been responsible for designing Britain's Antarctic Research Station, Hugh Broughton Architects knows how to keep humans alive in harsh conditions. The firm is using this experience to imagine what would be required to shelter humans on Mars.

ESA has awarded Airbus a €491 million contract to design and build the Earth Return Orbiter, which will return the first samples collected from the Red Planet by NASA's Perseverance rover to Earth.

When NASA’s newest rover touches down on Mars, it will carry with it a set of mirrors that will serve as targets for future laser-wielding spacecraft. The laser-bouncing tech is similar to that used in the Apollo era, to characterize the Moon.

ESA's Mars Express has found evidence of more liquid water beneath the ice cap in the south polar region of Mars. Based on data from the MARSIS radar instrument, researchers found three subsurface ponds with the largest measuring 20 x 30 km (12 x 19 mi).