[Saturday, April 1, 2006] This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a layered, light-toned mesa among other layered materials exposed in a mound that covers much of the floor of Spallanzani Crater.

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[Saturday, April 1, 2006] This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows two impact craters of nearly equal size, plus their associated wind streaks. These occur in far eastern Chryse Planitia.

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[Sunday, April 2, 2006] This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a pedestal crater in the Promethei Terra region. The ejecta from an impact crater is usually rocky.

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[Sunday, April 2, 2006] The Mars Climate Sounder, an instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter designed to monitor daily changes in the global atmosphere of Mars, made its first observations of Mars on March 24, 2006.

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[Sunday, April 2, 2006] NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter yesterday began a crucial six-month campaign to gradually shrink its orbit into the best geometry for the mission's science work.

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[Monday, April 3, 2006] This image shows the margin of a lava flow on a cratered plain in the Athabasca Vallis region of Mars. Remarkably, the portion of the cratered plain in this scene is essentially free of bright, windblown ripples.

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[Tuesday, April 4, 2006] As currently envisioned, during a Mars mission "We run the possibility of losing nearly half the bone mineral in some regions of the body, which would make the astronauts' skeletons the equivalent of a 100-year-old person."

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[Tuesday, April 4, 2006] A study in the March issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology shows for the first time that a person at "reclining bedrest" reacts almost exactly the way an astronaut's body adapts to space.

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[Tuesday, April 4, 2006] Spirit executed drives on sols 792 and 794 (March 26 and 27), but has been having trouble making progress given the current terrain and driving conditions. The team is developing new drive strategies for five-wheel driving in the test facility.

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[Tuesday, April 4, 2006] This picture is a composite of daily global images acquired at Ls 39 degrees during a previous Mars year. This month, Mars looks similar, as Ls 39 degrees occurs in mid-April 2006.

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[Wednesday, April 5, 2006] This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows the margin of a lava flow on a plain northwest of Jovis Tholus, a volcanic construct located in the Tharsis region of Mars.

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[Thursday, April 6, 2006] This image shows the edge of a trough, which is part of a large pit crater complex in Noachis Terra. This type of trough forms through the collapse of surface materials into the subsurface, and often begins as a series of individual pit craters.

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[Friday, April 7, 2006] New Horizons' trailblazing journey to the solar system's outermost frontier took it past the orbit of Mars today at 6 a.m. EDT (1000 UTC), 78 days after the spacecraft launched.

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[Friday, April 7, 2006] Cracks and fins in the sand in an American desert look very similar to features seen on Mars and may indicate the recent presence of water at the surface, according to a new study.

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[Friday, April 7, 2006] This image shows south polar mesas composed largely of solid carbon dioxide separated by generally circular depressions. The arcuate scarps, which delineate the mesas, retreat approximately 3 meters per Mars year.

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[Friday, April 7, 2006] Scientists are delighted with new test images from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera.

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[Friday, April 7, 2006] On the way to north-facing slopes on "McCool Hill" Spirit ran into an impassable, sandy area. To increase solar power output, Spirit's handlers redirected the rover to a closer north-facing slope in an area known as "Low Ridge" or "Low Ridge Haven.

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[Saturday, April 8, 2006] This image shows part of a low mountain belt that rings the Argyre impact basin in Mars' southern hemisphere. The mountains or hills seen here are located in the northwestern part of the Charitum Montes.

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[Saturday, April 8, 2006] This perspective view generated from digital topography provides an overview of the Mars terrain covered in the first color image of Mars from MRO. It has a field of view 55 degrees wide, and no vertical exaggeration.

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[Saturday, April 8, 2006] This is not natural color as seen by human eyes, but infrared color -- shifted to longer wavelengths. This image also has been processed to enhance subtle color variations.

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[Saturday, April 8, 2006] This image shows a portion of a field of dark sand dunes superposed on the light-toned floor of a crater in eastern Tyrrhena Terra. The orientation of the dunes suggests that winds generally blew from north to south at the time the dunes were formed.

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[Monday, April 10, 2006] These images, taken by the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board ESA's Mars Express spacecraft, show the Galle Crater, an impact crater located on the eastern rim of the Argyre Planitia impact basin on Mars.

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[Monday, April 10, 2006] This image shows an eroded stack of layered material in a crater of the south polar region of Mars. The composition of the layers is not known; some speculate that they may contain a combination of dust and ice, or possibly ancient sedimentary rock.

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[Monday, April 10, 2006] This image shows a dust devil traveling across a plain west-southwest of Schiaparelli Crater, in far eastern Sinus Meridiani. The dust devil is casting a shadow toward the northeast, just south (below) of an egg-shaped crater.

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[Tuesday, April 11, 2006] NASA is developing a global space exploration strategy. A series of activities are planned in 2006 to gain a better understanding of the role that human and robotic exploration and development of a sustained human presence on the moon.

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[Tuesday, April 11, 2006] This picture is a composite of daily global images acquired at Ls 39 degrees during a previous Mars year. This month, Mars looks similar, as Ls 39 degrees occurs in mid-April 2006.The picture shows the Acidalia/Mare Erythraeum face of Mars.

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[Wednesday, April 12, 2006] This image shows dunes covered and delineated by seasonal frost in the north polar region of Mars. The winds responsible for the formation of these dunes blew primarily from the northwest with additional influences from the north and northeast.

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[Wednesday, April 12, 2006] NASA's Mars rover Spirit has reached a safe site for the Martian winter, while its twin, Opportunity, is making fast progress toward a destination of its own.

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[Wednesday, April 12, 2006] ESA has taken a further step in preparing for participation in Mars Sample Return (MSR), the landmark mission to return samples from the Red Planet, with the announcement of the next phase of industrial activity.

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[Thursday, April 13, 2006] This image shows ridges exposed by erosion in the Aeolis region of Mars. The curved and crisscrossing ridges were once channels in a fan of sediment deposited in the Aeolis lowlands.

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[Thursday, April 13, 2006] As part of the checkout of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) payload after the 10 March 2006 orbit insertion, the Mars Color Imager (MARCI) acquired a seven band color wide angle view of Mars on 24 March 2006.

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[Thursday, April 13, 2006] To investigate the acceptable CG limits for future designs, the NASA EVA Physiology EPSP working in conjunction with the Crew and Thermal Systems engineers have developed a reconfigurable CG backpack that can be worn by divers on "sea walks".

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[Thursday, April 13, 2006] "In April 2002, a COSPAR planetary protection workshop formulated a draft definition of "special region" and proposed that a new mission categorization, Category IVc, be established for missions that come (or might come) into contact with them."

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[Thursday, April 13, 2006] Images taken during the first tests confirm the performance capability of the cameras even though the test images were taken from nearly 10 times as far from the planet as the spacecraft will be once it finishes reshaping its orbit.

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[Friday, April 14, 2006] This image shows light-toned, layered rock outcrops in the central pit of an impact crater in the Thaumasia Planum region of Mars. The outcrops were tilted and broken-up by the extreme energy of the impact that formed the crater in which they occur.

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[Saturday, April 15, 2006] This image shows a mid-summer view of a portion of the south polar residual cap of Mars. The large, relatively flat-lying, puzzle-like pieces in this scene are mesas composed largely of solid carbon dioxide.

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[Saturday, April 15, 2006] Spirit is basking in the sun on a 10.8-degree, north-facing slope in Gusev Crater. After turning away from a previous heading toward "McCool Hill" last week, Spirit started driving toward "Low Ridge Haven" and arrived there over the weekend.

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[Sunday, April 16, 2006] This image shows the margin of an ancient, cratered, hummocky (rough) lava flow at just the point where it encroached upon a small impact crater east of the volcano, Tharsis Tholus.

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[Monday, April 17, 2006] This image shows a 1.5 meter per pixel view of a crater in the Terra Cimmeria region of Mars. Several gullies extend from near the top of the crater rim, downslope toward the floor of the crater. Liquid water might have played a role in their genesis.

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[Monday, April 17, 2006] Most self-respecting starships in science fiction stories use antimatter as fuel for a good reason - it's the most potent fuel known. While tons of chemical fuel are needed to propel a human mission to Mars, just tens of milligrams of antimatter will do.

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[Tuesday, April 18, 2006] This picture is a composite of daily global images acquired at Ls 39 degrees during a previous Mars year. This month, Mars looks similar, as Ls 39 degrees occurs in mid-April 2006. The picture shows the Syrtis Major face of Mars.

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[Tuesday, April 18, 2006] "NASA intends to select a Scout mission to launch by January 31, 2012. Missions of Opportunity may also be selected. "

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[Wednesday, April 19, 2006] Thisimage shows a contact between terrain which is completely mantled by a smooth-surfaced material - perhaps dust - and a rugged, cratered surface that is only partially dust-covered in the Noachis Terra region of Mars.

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[Wednesday, April 19, 2006] "The Mars Science and Telecommunications Orbiter (MSTO) is a major infrastructure component for the next decade of Mars exploration. MSTO, a Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) – class spacecraft, is proposed for launch in 2011 or 2013."

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[Wednesday, April 19, 2006] The team built three drives this week and Opportunity drove 83.2 meters. The general drive direction is southeast to avoid a large dune field due south. As of sol 788, Opportunity was estimated to be 1,557 meters from "Victoria Crater."

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[Thursday, April 20, 2006] This image shows a complex pattern of intersecting and overlapping troughs in the Olympica Fossae region of northern Tharsis. Some combination of floods, lava flows, and faulting/tectonic activity contributed to this scene, followed by mantling by dust.

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[Friday, April 21, 2006] This image shows a group of dust-covered buttes in the Aeolis region of Mars. Dozens of dark slope streaks - created by dry avalanches of dust - extend from a variety of elevations toward the base of each butte.

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[Friday, April 21, 2006] By mapping minerals on the surface of Mars using the Mars Express, scientists have discovered the three ages of Martian geological history – as reported in today's issue of Science - and found valuable clues as to where life might have developed.

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[Friday, April 21, 2006] Mars started out relatively wet and temperate, underwent a major climate shift, and evolved into a cold, dry place strewn with acidic rock – less than ideal conditions for supporting life.

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[Friday, April 21, 2006] Findings and recommendations from NASA's Exploration Strategy Workshop will be presented to media during a teleconference at 2 p.m. EDT on Friday, April 28.

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[Saturday, April 22, 2006] NASA JPL manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing.

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[Saturday, April 22, 2006] This image shows a portion of the south polar residual cap. The darkened edges of the pits and mesas are evidence of the removal - by sublimation - of frozen carbon dioxide during the recent martian summer.

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[Saturday, April 22, 2006] A new robotic arm destined to dig deep into Mars' polar crust has been completed by Alliance Spacesystems, Inc., and delivered - one month early - to NASA JPL for integration onto the Mars Phoenix lander, due for launch to the Red Planet next year. 

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[Saturday, April 22, 2006] Opportunity is healthy and making good progress towards "Victoria Crater." The rover remains on a restricted schedule, driving only every other day.

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[Saturday, April 22, 2006] Spirit remains healthy and is enjoying the winter sun on Mars. This week, Spirit began acquiring a full-color, high-resolution, 360-degree panorama nicknamed the "McMurdo Pan."

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[Sunday, April 23, 2006] "The TES spectrometer is currently being used intermittently. The TES bolometer is still being used full-time, and we will continue to update the daytime and nighttime temperature movies."

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[Sunday, April 23, 2006] This image shows small ridges Memnonia. The ridges or yardangs, as they are called, are formed by wind erosion of a material which is apparently more susceptible to modification by wind than other, probably stronger, materials in the scene.

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[Monday, April 24, 2006] This image shows a portion of the south polar residual cap of Mars. The bright, relatively homogeneous-appearing material extending from top (north) to bottom (south) is mainly composed of solid carbon dioxide.

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[Tuesday, April 25, 2006] This picture is a composite of daily global images acquired at Ls 39 degrees during a previous Mars year. This month, Mars looks similar, as Ls 39 degrees; occurred in mid-April 2006. The picture shows the Elysium/Mare Cimmerium face of Mars.

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[Tuesday, April 25, 2006] These images, taken by the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board ESA's Mars Express spacecraft, show the Nanedi Valles valley system, a steep-sided feature that may have been formed in part by free-flowing water.

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[Wednesday, April 26, 2006] This image shows dark-toned sand dunes on the floor of Russell Crater in south-central, Noachis Terra. A dune at the right (east) edge of the image is host to several small gullies whose channels extend predominantly to the west-southwest.

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[Wednesday, April 26, 2006] The MarsGRACE Mission aims at translating the success of GRACE mission from Earth to the purpose of mapping mass flux on Mars.

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[Thursday, April 27, 2006] NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, the next mission to the surface of Mars, is beginning a new phase in preparation for a launch in August 2007.

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[Thursday, April 27, 2006] This image shows an array of gullies in the north-northwest wall of a crater in Terra Cimmeria. These features may have been formed through the interaction of several processes including groundwater.

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[Friday, April 28, 2006] Why are we going to the moon? What will we do when we get there? Approximately 200 participants from 13 countries grappled with these questions during NASA's Exploration Strategy Workshop, which concluded Friday.

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[Friday, April 28, 2006] "The TES spectrometer is currently being used intermittently. The TES bolometer is still being used full-time, and we will continue to update the daytime and nighttime temperature movies."

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[Friday, April 28, 2006] This image shows a plain southeast of Hebrus Valles that is cut by a network of intersecting troughs. Large, windblown - and perhaps wind-eroded - ripples occur on the trough floors.

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[Friday, April 28, 2006] NASA JPL manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing.

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[Saturday, April 29, 2006] This image shows an undulating scene in the south polar region of Mars. Small, elevated mesas of smooth, relatively homogeneous-appearing material are separated by low-lying regions that are speckled and darkened in some local areas.

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[Sunday, April 30, 2006] This image shows a variety of materials found on the floor of an impact crater northwest of Hellas Planitia. The discontinuous, dark-toned ridges are windblown ripples which overlie light-toned rock that is heavily fractured and cratered.

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