T minus 7 days until the crew field season begins at the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station in Utah! NorCal Chapter of the Mars Society continues to refurbish and upgrade our spacesuits for MDRS and its crew members, who carry out important research and field exploration during two-week simulations in the Mars-like terrain of southern Utah. New to this field season, which begins on September 26th, are the 3-D printed neck rings which are HALF the weight of the… READ MORE >
News & Announcements
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Maria Antonietta Perino, Thales Alenia Space Italia’s Director of Space Economy Exploration & International Network, will be making a virtual presentation entitled “Exploration: From LEO to the Moon and Mars” during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17. Ms. Perino joined Thales Alenia Space Italia in 1986, where she has been responsible for the major programs related to Moon and Mars exploration for the Italian Space Agency and… READ MORE >
The Mars Society will be convening (virtually) its 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention October 14-17, 2021. Leading experts from the global space community will be discussing the latest news about exploring Mars and plans for a human mission to the Red Planet. We’re looking for a few tech-savvy volunteers to help us with managing aspects of the online four-day conference. If you’re interested in helping out, please contact Carie (cfay@marssociety.org). Thanks!… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Nathaniel Putzig, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute in Colorado, will be giving a virtual plenary talk about exploring for buried water ice on the planet Mars during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17. As deputy team leader for NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument, Dr. Putzig will present the latest results from the Mars Subsurface Water Ice Mapping (SWIM) Project, which involves… READ MORE >
Come join our Red Planet Live video podcast on Tuesday, September 14th at 6:00 pm Pacific / 9:00 pm Eastern for an amazing look inside the awesome technology that the Mars Society is working on! During the first half of the show, Ron Craig will be interviewing James Burk, Mars Society IT Director, about some of the technology initiatives that he and his team are spearheading, including the MarsVR project, the innovative aspects of the organization’s virtual convention scheduled for… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is very pleased to announce that Omran Sharaf, Project Director of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Hope Mars orbiter, will give a virtual presentation about the spacecraft’s mission and accomplishments during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17. Mr. Sharaf and his team at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) in Dubai have worked on the project since its inception, focusing on developing, launching, and operating the Hope Mars orbiting probe, as… READ MORE >
The Mars Society announced today that it is looking to hire a full-time Executive Director for the organization. The Mars Society is the world’s largest and most influential space advocacy non-profit organization dedicated to the exploration and human settlement of the planet Mars. With thousands of members and many chapters around the world, the Mars Society operates two Mars analog stations where crews carry out research and test methods of Mars field exploration on Earth. The organization also convenes annual… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Penelope “Penny” Boston, a senior NASA astrobiologist and geomicrobiologist with extensive experience in extreme environments, will give a virtual plenary talk during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17. The title of her address will be “Astrobiology by Any Other Name… What Do We Mean by a Search for Something as Undefined as ‘Life’?” Currently, Dr. Boston is involved in science integration broadly across the NASA sciences… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. William “Bruce” Banerdt, Principal Investigator for NASA’s Mars InSight lander, will give an update about its mission, accomplishments, and status during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 14-17. A veteran scientist at Jet Propulsion Laboratory since 1983, Dr. Banerdt supervises InSight’s efforts to study the deep interior of the planet Mars, including its crust, mantle, and core. Using state-of-the-art instruments, the lander has also detected over 500… READ MORE >
Do you have a strong interest in pursuing a career in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) related field? Are you a young adult following a traditional path and getting ready to take your first step at the university level or perhaps you’re already well on your way? Maybe you are a more seasoned adult looking to pivot to STEM after already pursuing other career choices? Red Planet Live is going to explore both options, although much of the… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Setthivoine You, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist of Helicity Space, will discuss his company’s Helicity Drive, a novel fusion drive concept, during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 14-17, 2021. Helicity Space is developing an in-space fusion propulsion and power technology, critical to enabling humanity’s access to the solar system, with a Helicity Drive-powered flight to Mars expected to take two months, without planetary alignment. Dr. You received… READ MORE >
The Mars Society invites potential sponsors to support the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled to be held virtually October 14-17, 2021. Last year’s online Mars Society convention was a record-breaking success, with 1 million live stream viewers and over 10,000 attendees. 150 speakers gave presentations and also participated in panel discussions and public debates. The four-day virtual event will feature a variety of key experts in the fields of government, business, academia, military, media, and philanthropy who will… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Karl Stapelfeldt, Chief Scientist for NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration Program, will be giving a virtual presentation about the ongoing search for planets orbiting other stars during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17, 2021. Working at JPL in California, Dr. Stapelfeldt is involved in refining the content and direction of NASA exoplanet missions, technology developments, and scientific research. Over his 30-year career, he has been a member of… READ MORE >
With NASA-JPL’s Ingenuity helicopter making history on an almost weekly basis with flights above the Martian surface, the Mars Society is pleased to welcome Theodore (Teddy) Tzanetos, Ingenuity Operations Lead, as a virtual plenary speaker during its 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17, 2021. Mr. Tzanetos serves as a Robotics Technologist in JPL’s Robotics Mobility Group, focusing on the Mars science helicopter mission. His expertise involves embedded system development with an emphasis on state estimation for… READ MORE >
RED PLANET BOUND by Evan Plant-Weir International collaboration in space is an important catalyst for the growth of our species. Not only does is bolster our total scientific and economic productivity as a planet, but it also constitutes an important mechanism for our transition into a more planetary-minded people. Humanity is fumbling through its adolescence. We grapple with the messy contradictions found at the intersection of our violent past, and our aspirations for the future. We have matured enough as… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is very pleased to announce that the winner of this year’s Mars Society Poster Contest is Olivier Gourdon of France. He is a designer and artist by trade, currently serving as a workshop manager in the graphic industry, and having previously worked in the newspaper and communication agency field. Olivier also was part of a French team in the 2020 Mars City State Design Competition. Graphic artists who participated in our annual design contest were asked to submit… READ MORE >
Dr. Vandi Verma, JPL Supervisor of Operable Robotics for Mars Perseverance and Mars Curiosity, will provide a virtual update about navigating the two rover missions on the surface of Mars during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 14-17, 2021. Dr. Verma joined JPL’s Mobility and Robotics Systems Section 14 years ago, with research interest in robotic software that enables autonomy and commanding under uncertainty for coordinated manipulation, mobility, sampling and science. Since 2008, she has been driving Mars rovers… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that veteran astrobiologist Dr. Charles Cockell, will give a virtual plenary address at the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention (Oct. 14-17) about the concept of “engineering a free Mars” by reviewing how humanity can “use engineering to drive extraterrestrial society away from tyranny and toward freedom.” As Chair of Astrobiology at the University of Edinburgh’s School of Physics & Astronomy, Dr. Cockell’s research group focuses on the study of life in extreme… READ MORE >
Dr. Carol Stoker, a veteran planetary scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center and a founding member of the Mars Underground, will give a virtual plenary address entitled “The Search for Life on Mars: What We Are Doing & What We Should Do” during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17, 2021. Dr. Stoker has been involved with the Ames Research Center for 36 years, specializing in a range of Mars exploration science and technology. Most of… READ MORE >
Today, the Mars Society was selected to receive a $1 million grant from Blue Origin’s Club for the Future. This generous grant will allow us to expand all of our activities, including conferences, publications, STEM outreach, engineering competitions, and student participation as crew members at our Mars analog research stations, helping us to learn how best to explore the Red Planet by engaging in comparable field exploration in some of the most Mars-like environments on Earth. “Our recent auction for the first seat on… READ MORE >
The Mars Society invites you to join us this Thursday (July 15th) at 6pm PST / 9pm EST for the next episode of our Red Planet Live video podcast with an amazing discussion with Crew 245 about their recent two-week simulation at the Mars Desert Research Station in southern Utah. Participating in the show with our host, Ron Craig, will be the full team – Dylan Dickstein, Commander, Shayna Hume, Executive Officer (XO), Julio Hernandez, Crew Botanist, Shravan Hariharan, Crew… READ MORE >
By Lawrence Klaes, Guest Writer, The Mars Society If there is one highlight among many that the Twenty-First Century can be noted for when it comes to space exploration, it is as the era when the automated rover really took off – and all over – the planet Mars. At this moment, there are three functioning multi-wheeled explorers making their way across different parts of the Red Planet, their suites of instruments gleaning what they can about their new homes… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Katie Stack Morgan, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Deputy Project Scientist for NASA’s Perseverance rover, will provide an update about the mission’s current work exploring the Martian surface as well as future planning during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17, 2021. The Perseverance rover landed on the planet Mars earlier this year in February, with the goal of searching for signs of ancient life and collecting samples of… READ MORE >
With the Ingenuity helicopter continuing to operate on Mars, NASA has begun expanding its planning for additional aerial exploratory missions. As such, the Mars Society is very pleased to announce that NASA Chief Scientist Dr. Jim Green will be giving a virtual plenary address about “the future of flying on the Red Planet” during its 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 14-17, 2021. As a veteran planetary scientist and physicist, Dr. Green was appointed Chief Scientist at… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. Elizabeth Turtle, Principal Investigator of NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft-lander mission to Saturn’s largest moon Titan, will give a virtual update about the spacecraft during the 24th Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 14-17, 2021. Scheduled for launch in 2026 and arrival in 2034 and taking advantage of Titan’s dense atmosphere and low gravity, Dragonfly will explore dozens of locations across the moon’s frozen surface, sampling and measuring the composition of its organic materials, with… READ MORE >