Welcome to The Mars Society
This is the global and U.S. site for The Mars Society.
The Purpose of the Mars Society
- Broad public outreach to instill the vision of pioneering Mars.
- Support of ever more aggressive government funded Mars exploration programs around the world.
- Conducting Mars exploration on a private basis.
Founding Declaration
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Interested in finding out more about us? Read the Mars Society
FAQ.Mars Society News
Up one levelNASA announced recently that the Phoenix lander, launched on a mission to the northern polar region of the Red Planet in August 2007, had detected water ice during the first of many chemical analyses planned during the three month mission. In addition, initial mineralogy experiments have revealed a striking similarity between Martian soil and the soil found in the Antarctic region of Earth. The significance of these findings cannot be overstated. Liquid water and chemical energy are essential for life, and in the presence of these two, as Dr. Wesley Huntress once remarked: "Life may be a cosmic imperative."
The drive to Mars is on! The Mars Society and MarsDrive would like to announce a new era of collaboration between our two organizations as we aim for Mars. Recognizing that all groups and individuals have an important role to play in this most challenging of tasks, we will work together in strategic areas which help streamline efforts towards a human future on Mars. MarsDrive will be assisting in various selected Mars Society projects from time to time and doing its best to ensure a new spirit of co-operation exists and flourishes between Mars and space advocacy groups in general.
REGISTER NOW! The Deadline for Early Registration and Submission of Abstracts for 11th Annual International Mars Society Convention is JUNE 30, 2008. If you want to take advantage of the early registration rate for the Mars Society Convention in Boulder, you must register by the end of the day on Monday, June 30, 2008.
We are pleased to announce that Dr. S. Pete Worden (Brig. Gen., USAF, ret.) will be speaking at The Mars Society Convention that will be taking place from August 14-17, 2008 in Boulder, Colorado. Dr. Worden currently serves as the Director of the NASA Ames Research Center.
National Geographic Germany Covers FMARS; Scientific American Highlights University Rover Challenge
A pair of Mars Society projects received favorable press coverage recently.
The deadline for submitting abstracts for the 11th Annual International Mars Society Convention is fast approaching. An international audience of Mars experts and enthusiasts awaits your ideas, designs, research, and proposals dealing with all matters (science, engineering, politics, economics, public policy, etc.) associated with the exploration and settlement of Mars.
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Artemis Westenberg has been named Director, International Relations of The Mars Society.
Prometheus Music has made the entire contents of "To Touch The Stars", the first ever anthology CD of music celebrating human space exploration, available as streaming CD-quality audio on its web site to celebrate the successful touchdown of the Phoenix Mars Lander.
May 25, 2008 was quite an amazing day. Not only did the Phoenix Mars Lander successfully descend to the Martian surface, it was also the final day that the Mars Society was accepting submissions for the Mars Project Challenge (MPC). The Mars Society received over 30 submissions for this program. These projects covered a wide range of concepts including ambitious education programs, technology demonstrations on Earth, and proposals that would send hardware into space.
We are pleased to announce Dr. Alan Stern will be speaking at the 11th Annual International Mars Society Convention, which will be taking place from August 14-17, 2008 in Boulder, Colorado. Dr. Stern recently served as Associate Administrator, NASA Science Mission Directorate, and is currently the principal investigator for the New Horizons mission to Pluto.
After two days of intense competition and hard work from all involved, Oregon State University captured first place in the 2008 University Rover Challenge tonight at the Mars Desert Research Station. They narrowly beat out the defending champions from the University of Nevada Reno. Following hot on their heels in third place was first-time entrant from the York University of Toronto, Canada.
With day one of the second annual University Rover Challenge complete, a number of surprises have emerged and teams are in close competition for the top prize.
In a townhall speech in Florida on Thursday, June 5 quoted extensively by the AFP, Republican presidential candidate John McCain said he would like to see a manned mission to Mars as part of a "better set of priorities" for NASA.
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Vatican astronomer Brother Guy Consolmagno will be speaking at the 11th Annual International Mars Society Convention in Boulder, Colorado. Consolmagno will participate in a program called "Religion and Space Exploration" which will discuss what impact (if any) space exploration will have on religion.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA -- The Northern California Chapter of the Mars Society and NASA Ames Research Center have been awarded a grant by Google for the "Spaceward Bound Robotic Vehicle Project for Research and Education". The project will purchase and configure two robotic rovers for use in telepresence testing as part of Spaceward Bound. Spaceward Bound is an educational program organized at NASA Ames Research Center in partnership with The Mars Society, and funded by the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) at NASA Headquarters.
Phoenix Landing Produces Major Media Coverage For Mars Society
In the wake of the successful landing of the Phoenix Mars Lander less than 10 days ago, the Mars Society has received a spike in coverage by major media around the world.
More than five dozen college students will descend upon the quiet, desert oasis of Hanksville, Utah this Thursday, June 5, for the Mars Society’s 2008 University Rover Challenge (URC), sponsored by Raytheon. Teams will spend Thursday touring the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) facility, completing last-minute practice runs, and formally weighing-in their rovers. Competition begins on Friday, June 6, with the Construction, and Soil Characterization Tasks, and runs through Saturday, June 7, with the Emergency Navigation, and Geology Tasks.
As part of our ongoing efforts to make the Marssociety.org web site more useful, the Mars Society web team is pleased to announce the availability of a Mars-themed web bulletin board at http://forums.marssociety.org/.
We are pleased to announce that SpaceX founder Elon Musk will be speaking at the 11th Annual International Mars Society Convention which will be taking place from August 14-17, 2008 in Boulder, Colorado. A longtime supporter of the Mars Society, Musk founded SpaceX in 2002. SpaceX is part of NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program, for which it is designing and building the Falcon 9 human-rated launch vehicle and Dragon spaceship to transport cargo and then astronauts to the International Space Station. Musk will provide a full update on his progress at the Convention and how his efforts may help us to get humans to Mars.
Members of the Mars Society around the world gathered tonight to cheer on the Phoenix Mars Lander team, with "Mars Parties" in locations as far-flung as Paris and San Diego. The events, designed to simultaneously raise public awareness of this important mission and celebrate the hard work and dedication of the teams who are making it a success, reached their climax when the lander sent back confirmation of its successful descent.
Contained Smart Folders:
- Expired News — by Jean Lagarde — last modified 2007-06-05 00:50
- Expired news, newsletters, press releases (i.e. of mostly historical value).

