fbpx
MDRS Director Sergii Iakymov to Join NASA HERA Simulation in Houston

We are very excited to share that our own Sergii Iakymov, Director of the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), has been chosen to join a 45-day NASA simulated Mars mission (Aug. 9 – Sept. 23) at the HERA analog facility at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Congratulations, Sergii! We wish you and your crew an incredible experience on your mission “to Mars!” NASA Research Volunteers to Begin Next Simulated Mission to Mars [NASA Announcement, 07.22.24] NASA selected a new team… READ MORE >

Expert Panel on NASA’s Mars Exploration Strategies at 2024 Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is excited to announce that a major panel discussion on NASA’s current and future Mars exploration plans will take place (virtually) on Friday, August 9th at 10:00 am PT / 1:00 pm ET as part of the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention. Amid the growing complexities of Mars exploration, NASA is concentrating on several key areas: deploying robotic exploratory systems (rovers, landers, and orbiters), returning Martian rock and soil samples to Earth, and designing infrastructure for… READ MORE >

Red Planet Live to Welcome Top-Level NASA Mars Panel on July 2nd

The Mars Society is very pleased to announce that a distinguished three-person NASA panel will join the Red Planet Live (RPL) podcast on Tuesday, July 2nd at 5:00 pm PT / 8:00 pm ET. This expert team will delve into topics including Mars exploration, strategies for sample returns from the Red Planet, and the architecture supporting Moon to Mars missions. Hosted by Ashton Zeth, this first podcast episode of July will mark the beginning of RPL’s new twice-a-month format (airing… READ MORE >

Pluto Explorer Alan Stern to Address Mars Society Convention Banquet

The Mars Society is thrilled to announce that Dr. Alan Stern, a renowned planetary scientist and commercial astronaut, will be delivering an address at the Saturday evening banquet on August 10th during the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention. The event will take place at the University of Washington (Seattle) from August 8-11, 2024. Dr. Stern’s talk, titled “The Other Red Planet,” will focus on exploring Pluto. Dr. Stern is best known for his role as the principal investigator of… READ MORE >

Using Rovers to Explore Mars: Insights from Dr. Vandi Verma at the 2024 Mars Society Convention

Joining us at the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention is Dr. Vandi Verma, JPL Principal Engineer & Deputy Section Manager for NASA JPL’s Mobility & Robotics division. She’ll delve into the current missions of the Perseverance and Curiosity rovers on the Martian surface. Happening from August 8-11, 2024, at the University of Washington in Seattle, this global conference promises insights into cutting-edge space exploration. Dr. Verma serves as Chief Engineer of Robotic Operations for Mars 2020 and has an… READ MORE >

MIT-Harvard Student to Present on Artificial Gravity & Space Exploration at Mars Society Convention

Anna Wadhwa, a MD student at Harvard Medical School and a Ph.D. candidate at MIT’s Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics, will give a presentation at the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention at the University of Washington (Seattle) this August, with the title of her address being “You Spin Me ‘Right Round’: The Latest Research on Artificial Gravity by Centrifugation and Its Implications for Human Space Exploration.”  Interested in enabling human space exploration to the Moon, Mars and beyond, Ms…. READ MORE >

A Practical Approach to the Mars Sample Return Mission [R.Zubrin]

By Dr. Robert Zubrin, SpaceNews.com, 05.06.24 NASA’s Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission has run aground, wrecked by a $10 billion price estimate, a 16 year timeline and excessive mission and programmatic risk. If the mission is to proceed, a much simpler and cheaper approach must be found. Fortunately, such an approach is available. The current MSR mission plan is so costly, complex, and risky because it has not been approached as a mission to be accomplished as swiftly and cheaply as possible,… READ MORE >

Journalist Ling Xin to Discuss China’s Space Program during 2024 Mars Society Convention

Join us at the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention, where we’re excited to host Ling Xin, a veteran science journalist. Ms. Xin will be sharing insights into China’s expanding presence in space exploration, covering its activities in low Earth orbit (LEO), lunar missions, and ambitious long-term plans. Based in Ohio, Ms. Xin’s work has appeared in esteemed publications like the South China Morning Post, Science, Nature, and Scientific American, where she brings her expertise in space, physics, and astronomy… READ MORE >

NASA’s Howard Hu to Speak on Artemis Plans at Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is excited to announce that Howard Hu, the Orion Program Director at NASA, will be a plenary speaker at the 27th Annual International Mars Society Convention, taking place at the University of Washington from August 8-11, 2024. Hu will discuss “NASA’s Artemis plans for returning to the Moon and beyond”. As the leader of the Orion Program, Mr. Hu oversees the development of NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which is designed for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. He… READ MORE >

Register for the 2024 International Mars Society Convention!

Calling all Mars and space advocates! Mark your calendars for the 2024 International Mars Society Convention, taking place Thursday, August 8th through Sunday, August 11th at the University of Washington campus (The HUB) in Seattle. This annual event, now in its 27th year, remains the premier global gathering focused on Mars exploration, human settlement planning, and cutting-edge space-related topics. The convention will bring together a diverse array of experts including scientists, engineers, aerospace executives, policymakers, journalists, and space enthusiasts to discuss humanity’s… READ MORE >

NASA Funded STEM Opportunity at MDRS for Teachers in Utah

Spaceward Bound Utah will host its final two MDRS cohorts in Fall 2024 & Spring 2025 NASA Spaceward Bound (SWB) is a popular and successful program to train K-12 teachers in how to engage their students in activities that will inspire careers in the space sciences by taking educators into the field with scientists who are working on space-related research in a given location.  First instituted by scientists and researchers at NASA Ames, today researchers involved in that early project… READ MORE >

“Like Father, Like Son” – RPL to Welcome Space Explorers Jose & Julio Hernandez

Mark your calendars for an inspiring episode of Red Planet Live on Tuesday, February 27th at 5:00 pm PT / 8:00 pm ET. We’re honored to host former NASA astronaut Jose M. Hernandez alongside his son, Dr. Julio Hernandez, a researcher at Purdue University and former Mars analog astronaut. Jose worked at NASA Johnson Space Center from 2001 to 2011, where he served as an astronaut, legislative analyst, branch chief, and materials research engineer. He was on the STS-128 shuttle mission, during which he oversaw… READ MORE >

Rethink the Mars Program (R.Zubrin – Op.Ed.)

It’s time to consider alternatives to sample return By Robert Zubrin, Space News, 12.07.23 NASA’s robotic Mars exploration program is in crisis. A recent review of the plan of its flagship Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission pegged its cost at $10 billion, a price tag that threatens to preclude funding any other exploration missions to the Red Planet for the next decade and a half. While the decadal plan issued by a National Academy of Science committee identifies the MSR mission as… READ MORE >

JPL Mars Ingenuity Helicopter Lead to Address 2023 Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Theodore (Teddy) Tzanetos, Manager of the JPL Mars Ingenuity Helicopter mission, will give a virtual plenary address this week during the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention at ASU (Tempe). The title of his talk will be “Ingenuity – The Martian Wright Flyer and Beyond.” In addition to supervising the Ingenuity helicopter mission at JPL, Mr. Tzanetos is also the Manager of JPL’s sample recovery helicopters to be used as part of… READ MORE >

NASA HERA Astronaut to Give Plenary Talk at 2023 Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Roberto Carlino, an aerospace engineer at NASA Ames Research Center and a former NASA HERA analog astronaut, will give a plenary address during the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention this October at Arizona State University in Tempe. The title of Mr. Carlino’s talk will be “What I learned from 45 days in isolation with NASA’s HERA mission,” which took place at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston in early 2022 with… READ MORE >

ASU’s Greg Autry to Evaluate NASA Science Budget during Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Greg Autry of the Arizona State University Thunderbird School of Global Management (TSGM) will give a plenary talk about the current state of NASA’s science budget and its likely impact on future plans for space exploration during the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention this October at ASU (Tempe). A Clinical Professor and Director of TSGM’s Thunderbird Initiative for Space Leadership, Policy, and Business and an Affiliate Professor with ASU’s Interplanetary… READ MORE >

Update about Mongolia’s Partnership with the Mars Society & Its Growing Involvement in Space

The Mars Society is pleased to bring you several updates about the growing partnership between the Mars Society and Mongolia’s MARS-V Project, an initiative in Mongolia to build the next Mars analog simulation station in the Gobi Desert. The MARS-V Project has recently become the Mars Society’s first official chapter in Mongolia. This new initiative signifies the country’s alignment with a global community of scientists, researchers and space enthusiasts. As one of the coldest and most inhospitable deserts on Earth,… READ MORE >

NASA MEP Deputy Director Tiffany Morgan to Address Mars Society Convention

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Tiffany M. Morgan, Deputy Director of the Mars Exploration Program in NASA’s Science Directorate, will be giving a plenary address during the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention at Arizona State University (Tempe), set for October 5-8, 2023. The title of her talk will be “Exploring Mars Together, DRAFT Plan for a Sustainable Future for Science at Mars”. In her current role at the agency, Ms. Morgan provides program leadership in exploring… READ MORE >

Set at ASU Again, 2023 Mars Society Convention Promises to be a State-of-the-Art Event 

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention will be held once again on the picturesque campus of Arizona State University (ASU) in Tempe on Thursday-Sunday, October 5-8, 2023.  As in previous years, the international conference will bring together leading scientists, engineers, commercial space executives, government policymakers, members of the media, and prominent space advocates to discuss the latest news about current and future Mars exploration and planning for a human mission to the… READ MORE >

Call for Abstracts

Presentations for the 26th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for Thursday-Sunday, October 5-8, 2023 at Arizona State University in Tempe, are invited. This year’s four-day global forum will deal with all matters associated with the exploration and settlement of the Red Planet, including science, technology, engineering, politics, public policy & advocacy, STEM education, economics, etc. Abstracts between 150-300 words can be uploaded on our Mars Society convention web site at: abstracts.marssociety.org. Please note that the deadline for submitting abstracts… READ MORE >

Red Planet Live to Welcome Former NASA Chief Scientist Jim Green

Former NASA Chief Scientist Dr. James Green will join Red Planet Live host Ashton Zeth on Tuesday, April 18th (5:00 pm PT / 8:00 pm ET) for a one-hour discussion about exploring Mars and the solar system, a return to the Moon via the Artemis program, the search for life, and much more. Dr. Green worked at the U.S. space agency for 42 years before retiring in December 2022. During his long career at NASA, he held the position of Chief Scientist and was… READ MORE >

From Classroom to Mars: A Teacher’s Experience with NASA Spaceward Bound Utah

By Jen Carver-Hunter, Veteran Educator, NASA Spaceward Bound Utah Spaceward Bound Utah (SWB) is a NASA-funded program at the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in southern Utah. The purpose of SWB is to inspire future space explorers by providing a Mars analog experience for classroom teachers. Each SWB cohort brings together a group of 6-8 educators with varied professional experience from Utah, across the country, and even internationally. The most recent SWB cohort, Crew 271, spent an engaging,… READ MORE >

In Case You Missed It (RPL Podcast 02.23)

We had an interesting and entertaining discussion with space visionary & entrepreneur Rick Tumlinson last night (Tuesday, February 21st) on our monthly Red Planet Live video podcast, hosted by Ashton Zeth. Both a rebel and a respected leader, Mr. Tumlinson is listed as one of the top 100 influential people in the space field, serving as a Partner in SpaceFund and Founder of the Earthlight Foundation. He coined the term “NewSpace” and is credited with helping create the new commercial space industry highlighted… READ MORE >

Register Today for Red Planet Live Podcast

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Sarah Milkovich of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be joining our one-hour Red Planet Live (RPL) video podcast with our new host Ashton Zeth on Tuesday, January 17, 2023 (5pm PST) to discuss current Mars robotic exploration as well as several Earth science projects she’s involved in for NASA. As a planetary geologist and systems engineer at JPL, Dr. Milkovich works on the Mars Perseverance Rover and with the Applied Earth Science Disasters program. She specializes in the science operations of robotic spacecraft,… READ MORE >

JPL’s Sarah Milkovich to Discuss Mars Exploration on Red Planet Live Podcast

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Sarah Milkovich of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be joining our one-hour Red Planet Live (RPL) video podcast (hosted by Ashton Zeth) on Tuesday, January 17, 2023 (5pm PST) to discuss current Mars exploration as well as several Earth science projects she’s involved in for NASA. As a planetary geologist and systems engineer at JPL, Dr. Milkovich currently works on the Mars Perseverance Rover and with the Applied Earth Science Disasters… READ MORE >