Mars, NASA

NASA’s Mars Sample Return Program Faces Stark Choices
NASA sees two paths for saving its beleaguered plan to retrieve materials from the Red Planet but won’t choose between them until 2026
NASA will announce update to Mars sample return plans today. Here's how to listen in
NASA's beleaguered Mars Sample Return program currently faces extreme costs of up to $11 billion and a timeline that could reach 2040.
NASA defers decision on Mars Sample Return to the Trump administration
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson left a final decision on a new mission architecture to the next NASA administrator working under the incoming Trump administration. President-elect Donald Trump nominated entrepreneur and commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman as the agency's 15th administrator last month.
NASA exploring two lower-cost options to go forward with Mars Sample Return mission
NASA announced Tuesday that it is exploring two options to move forward with its mission to return samples from Mars at a lower cost.
NASA won't decide on overhaul for Mars Sample Return mission until mid-2026
NASA recently deemed this situation unacceptable. In April 2024, agency chief Bill Nelson announced that an overhaul of the MSR strategy is in the works, saying that NASA will seek innovative new ideas from its research centers, private industry and academia.
NASA exploring 2 options to lower costs, speed up Mars Sample Return mission
NASA hopes a revised plan will get Mars samples back to Earth faster and cost less than the agency's original plan.
NASA’s Big Mars Update: How to Watch the Upcoming Sample Return Reveal
The space agency will provide a broadcast update on the marquee mission that is intended to recover samples of Martian rock for study on Earth.
NASA collected Mars rocks to haul to Earth. It still hasn’t decided how.
The Mars Sample Return mission has been ranked as the highest priority by planetary scientists, who hope to find signs of ancient life on Mars.
Mars rock samples may contain evidence of alien life, but can NASA get them back to Earth?
NASA will explore two different strategies for fetching Mars rocks collected by the Perseverance rover, and there's a chance these samples contain evidence of alien life.
NASA’s Answer to Mars Sample Return Problem: Develop Two Plans
The Perseverance rover has been collecting Martian rock samples since 2021, but NASA is still figuring out how to bring them back to Earth.
NASA Is One Step Closer to Bringing Mars Samples to Earth
The agency is starting down two different paths toward the samples' return, but only one will bring the red rocks home.
NASA collected potential evidence of life on Mars. Now it’s pitching new plans to retrieve the cache
NASA has arrived at two ways of returning samples collected on Mars to Earth. Now, the agency will test the options to see if ...
NASA scrapped its $11 billion scheme to grab Mars rocks that may point to alien life. Now it has a faster, cheaper plan.
NASA's mission to return samples from Mars and potentially discover the first signs of alien life has a new timeline. The ...
Samples from Mars' surface could unravel planet's history, researchers argue
Geologically, Mars is very reminiscent of the moon. But it also looks a lot like the Earth. It all depends on who you ask.