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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
Europe goes to Mars
NASA and ESA have signed a partnership agreement to get the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover down to the surface of Mars, getting the mission back on track after geopolitical factors delayed it.
What are competed planetary missions?
A critical part of a balanced exploration program, competed missions are scientist-led projects that cost less and occur more frequently than large, flagship-class missions.
NASA's FY 2025 budget request is not enough
Federal spending caps and inflation take a bite out of NASA's ambitions.
Red Rover Goes to Mars, 20 years later
Twenty years ago, a Planetary Society program sent students to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to work on the Mars Exploration Rovers program.
The science value of Mars Sample Return
The project has the potential to transform our understanding of the Solar System and provide evidence of life beyond Earth.
Can SpaceX’s Starship save Mars Sample Return?
Though promising conceptually, Starship presents more questions than answers for NASA's Mars Sample Return needs.
The path forward for Mars Sample Return
A brief summary of The Planetary Society's policy principles and recommendations for Mars Sample Return.
The history and motivations behind India's growing space program
Gurbir Singh joined us on Planetary Radio: Space Policy Edition to discuss the history and motivations behind India’s space program.
How layoffs at JPL can be traced to a stalemate in Congress
A battle over the future of Mars Sample Return is taking a toll on NASA’s workforce.
What went wrong with Mars Sample Return
An edited transcript of an interview with Orlando Figueroa, chair of the independent review team that evaluated NASA's Mars Sample Return program.
Why the true colors of the planets aren't what you think
Cameras on our space probes act as proxies for our own eyes, but what they see isn't necessarily what our eyes would see.
The best pictures of Mars from space
Spacecraft have been taking pictures of Mars from space since 1965. Here are some of our favorites.
The future of Mars Sample Return
An overview of the 2023 Independent Review Board report on the state and future of Mars Sample Return.
Storms and showers
Mars has storms of dust, while Saturn pours down ammonia rain. Here on Earth, we passed through a debris tail to get a special kind of shower.
Hasta la vista, baby
Terminators abound this week in space, and we’ll be back to Mars if NASA gets the budget it needs.
That’s a mare
An unusual lunar feature, Saturn’s shining rings, and Mars’ complex gullies.
The U.S. Senate threatens to cancel Mars Sample Return
The House has yet to weigh in. And much can still happen before this threat is realized.
Speedy spacecraft and pretty pics
Take a look at some of our favorite recent space images and learn about an express mission to Mars.
The Space Advocate Newsletter, July 2023
What's going on with Mars Sample Return?
Searching the skies to keep us all alive
Astronomers around the world are working to protect the Earth from asteroid impacts, with the help of Planetary Society members and donors.