Join us on Tuesday, March 18 at 5pm PT for an extraordinary journey into the future of space exploration on Red Planet Live. Hosted by Ashton Zeth, this special episode brings together the visionary leadership of the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station, located near Hanksville, Utah. In an engaging conversation, Executive Director James Burk, Director of MDRS Sergii Iakymov, and Director of Refits Kay Radzik will share the insights and experiences garnered from over twenty years of groundbreaking research… READ MORE >
News & Announcements
The Mars Society is thrilled to announce its annual poster design contest—and is calling on all creative minds! If you have a passion for graphic design and a love for Mars and space exploration, this is your chance to make your mark. The winning poster will be featured as the main promotional graphic for the 28th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 9–11, 2025 at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. This year’s convention theme, “Mars:… READ MORE >
The 2025 International Mars Society Convention invites presentations addressing all aspects of Mars exploration and settlement. We welcome proposals covering topics such as science, technology, engineering, politics, economics, public policy, space advocacy, international cooperation, and more. If you are interested in sharing your insights during the three-day event (October 9-11 at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles), please submit an abstract of 150-300 words via our Mars Society abstract page by Friday, June 27th at 5:00 pm MT for consideration…. READ MORE >
News broke today that the Trump administration will ask for a 50 percent cut in NASA’s Space Science Directorate budget for FY 2026. These cuts will almost certainly entail the shutting down of the Mars Curiosity rover, the Hubble Space Telescope, the Voyager and New Horizon interstellar probes, among others, and derail almost all plans for future American planetary exploration and astronomy missions. The Mars Society stands 100 percent in opposition to this brutal attempt to wreck American space science…. READ MORE >
High Schoolers, Ready to Conquer Mars? Join the 2025 Mission to Mars Engineering Design Competition!
The Mars Society is very proud to launch its Fourth Annual International Mission to Mars Engineering Design Competition for high school students aged 13-19 worldwide. This exciting virtual program invites students to take on a hands-on design challenge and explore the future of Mars exploration. Running Monday through Friday from June 9 – July 18, 2025, the program features lectures and workshops led by top scientists and engineers from NASA, the aerospace industry, and global academia. Participants will design a… READ MORE >
Get ready, Mars enthusiasts! The 2025 International Mars Society Convention is set for Thursday-Saturday, October 9–11 at USC (University of Southern California) in Los Angeles—its 28th year as the premier global conference on Mars exploration, human settlement planning, and cutting-edge space technologies. As the U.S. government announces its intention to make a near-term human mission to Mars the central goal of America’s space program, the convention’s theme “Mars: The Time has Come” will be right on target. Join leading scientists,… READ MORE >
The vision of sending humans to Mars is closer than ever, with both private and government-led initiatives making serious progress. Organizations like NASA, SpaceX, and international space agencies are actively developing the technology and strategies to make interplanetary travel a reality. But getting there requires more than just innovation—it demands consistent funding, policy stability, and global collaboration to ensure long-term success. To explore these challenges and opportunities, the Mars Society’s Red Planet Live podcast is convening a special episode with Dr. Robert Zubrin, the organization’s president and founder. Join us on Tuesday, March 4th… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Jim Cantrell, a renowned space entrepreneur and founding team member of SpaceX, will be the featured guest on the next episode of Red Planet Live (Feb. 18, 5pm PST) with host Ashton Zeth. Jim has played a pivotal role in the space industry, founding Phantom Space, Vector, and StratSpace, and contributing to 46+ satellite flight missions, including Iridium Next, Lightsail solar sail, and Osiris-Rex asteroid return. His extensive experience includes work with… READ MORE >
By Dr. Robert Zubrin, The New Atlantis, 01.31.25 Between SpaceX’s breakthroughs and Trump’s inaugural promise, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity. But it can’t be realized as an eccentric’s project or a pork banquet. Here’s a science-driven program that could get astronauts on the Red Planet by 2031. America now has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to open the space frontier by initiating a sustained program of human exploration of Mars. Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship launch system will soon be operational, offering payload… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is excited to announce that Shelli Brunswick, a globally renowned leader and speaker connecting the space community with the wider public to foster collaboration and innovation, will be the next guest on the Red Planet Live (RPL) podcast, hosted by Ashton Zeth. Tune in on Tuesday, February 4th, at 5:00 PM PST. Ms. Brunswick’s distinguished career includes her service in the U.S. Air Force, where she led space acquisition and policy initiatives, and her role as COO of Space… READ MORE >
Forbes, a renowned international magazine, covers a recent Red Planet Live podcast interview, hosted by Ashton Connaughton (Zeth), featuring Dr. Kris Zacny, VP of Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin Company, as he discusses plans for human and robotic exploration of the Moon and Mars. By Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes, 01.26.25 One of the globe’s top designers of space robots says a new “Golden Age of Space Exploration” – spearheaded by the world’s twin Titans of spaceflight – will speed up… READ MORE >
The Mars Society, the world’s largest space advocacy group dedicated to the human exploration and settlement of the Red Planet, hailed yesterday’s successful test flight of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. With its upper stage officially reaching orbit, this achievement marks a pivotal milestone for Blue Origin in its quest to advance space technology. Dr. Robert Zubrin, President of the Mars Society, praised the achievement, stating, “We welcome Blue Origin joining SpaceX with the successful launch… READ MORE >
We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Kris Zacny, Vice President & Director of Exploration Technology at Honeybee Robotics, as the next guest on Red Planet Live! Hosted by Ashton Zeth, this exciting episode will air on Tuesday, January 21st, at 5:00 PM PST / 8:00 PM EST. Dr. Zacny will share insights into Honeybee Robotics’ cutting-edge advancements in spacecraft, robotic rovers, and deep-space exploration technologies. He’ll also discuss space mining, In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU), and planetary geotechnical engineering, answering questions from… READ MORE >
The Mars Technology Institute (MTI) announced late last year that it is launching a global competition to demonstrate radically more efficient methods of food production needed to support the human settlement of the Red Planet. MTI is calling its contest the Mars Against Hunger (MAH) Prize because the technologies it aims to develop could go a long way towards ending the age-old scourge of hunger on Earth. There is no technological challenge in providing food for a Mars exploration expedition. Human explorers can simply bring their… READ MORE >
We’re excited to announce the next episode of Red Planet Live, hosted by Ashton Zeth, will feature Tiffany Swarmer and Michael Andrews, participants in the Crew 16 analog mission at the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station on Devon Island—the world’s largest uninhabited island, located 900 miles from the North Pole. Tune in on Tuesday, January 7th, at 5:00 PM PST for this 60-minute podcast! As members of the seven-person Crew 16 in July 2024, Tiffany served as Health & Safety Officer… READ MORE >
As we approach the close of another remarkable year, we want to pause and celebrate the extraordinary progress the Mars Society community has made toward the human exploration and settlement of the Red Planet. In reflecting on 2024’s achievements, we’re filled with pride, gratitude, and a renewed sense of purpose—and we hope you share in this excitement. Building on a Year of BreakthroughsWith your help, we have accomplished a lot over the past twelve months. We’ve maintained at a high level… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is excited to announce that prominent space author, journalist, and historian Rod Pyle will join the next episode of Red Planet Live, hosted by Ashton Zeth, on Tuesday, December 17th, at 5 PM PST. Author of 18 books on space history and exploration, including Space 2.0, First on the Moon, and Blueprint for a Battlestar, Mr. Pyle has made significant contributions to the world of space studies and development. As Editor-in-Chief of the National Space Society’s quarterly magazine, Ad Astra, he is… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is proud to announce the publication of its new book Students to Mars! The Mars Society’s International Design Competition for High School Students 2022-2023. Around the world, in all the best university engineering programs, students encounter at some point a class different from all the others. This is the engineering design class, within which, instead of being tested as individuals on their mastery of lectures and texts, the class is challenged to work as a team to… READ MORE >
Dear Friend, As we approach the end of 2024, I want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible progress we’ve made together at the Mars Society and invite you to join us in celebrating Giving Tuesday (December 3), a day of global giving on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving. Thanks to your unwavering support, our mission to advance humanity’s journey to Mars continues to thrive. This year, we embarked on new adventures and solidified our place as pioneers… READ MORE >
Shopping for your favorite Martian has never been easier! Explore a wide variety of Mars-themed gifts in the official Mars Society shop, The Mars Store. From unique keepsakes to out-of-this-world memorabilia, there’s something for every Mars enthusiast (including yourself!). While we’d love to offer every Red Friday (November 29th) shopper a 25% discount on all orders, as a non-profit organization, we dedicate every moment and every dollar to advancing the human exploration and settlement of Mars. Instead, we’re thrilled to… READ MORE >
Join us on Tuesday, December 3rd, at 5:00 PM PT / 8:00 pm ET for a special episode of the Mars Society’s Red Planet Live podcast! Host Ashton Zeth will be joined by Dr. Steven Benner, a renowned biochemist and Distinguished Fellow at the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution. Dr. Benner, a pioneer in synthetic biology and the creator of groundbreaking artificial genetic systems, will share insights on the possibility of a near-surface microbial biosphere on the Red Planet, as well as… READ MORE >
Mars Society Members & Advocates, Thank you for your ongoing dedication to space exploration. We’re pleased to provide an update on our Mars Exploration Act (MEA) initiative, which aims to secure congressional support for legislation requiring NASA to develop a plan to land astronauts on Mars within the next decade. This mandate sets a clear direction for Mars exploration, establishing focused goals, timelines, and mission planning independent of existing programs or incentives. As we move forward with advocacy, we’ll rely… READ MORE >
Congratulations to George Whitesides for his hard-fought victory in his race for Congress. George and his wife, Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides, have not only been long time friends of everyone striving for a spacefaring future for humanity, but they have also been leaders in the field themselves. Furthermore, and most importantly, they are fine people, with great minds and great hearts. All Americans have reason to be thankful they will be going to Washington. – Dr. Robert Zubrin, Mars Society President… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is thrilled to announce that Sergii Iakymov, Director of the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), will be joining host Ashton Zeth for the next episode of Red Planet Live on Tuesday, November 19th at 5:00 pm PST. With a wealth of experience in aerospace engineering, space research, and Mars analog missions, Sergii will share fascinating insights into the preparation and challenges of human Mars exploration. Sergii’s impressive career includes roles as an Aerospace Engineer, Project Manager, and… READ MORE >
Donald Trump has been elected president of the United States. The Mars Society is non-partisan and does not endorse any candidate. Many of our members and other space advocates supported Mr. Trump’s election, while many others opposed him. For reasons I have amply explained elsewhere, I have always been a member of the latter group. That said, whatever we think of the various policies that Mr. Trump has put on offer, there is one that I and the vast majority of Mars Society members certainly support: his promise to initiate a… READ MORE >