Mars Technica

Millions of miles and eight months of travel come to an end with a terrifying seven-minute landing. First things first: The rover starts on its to-do list.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy NASA/JPL. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-21-22256

Listen to audio of SuperCam's laser popping against Martian rock and wind as it whooshes past the rover. LANL principal investigator Roger Wiens explains what the sounds mean. Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy NASA/JPL. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-21-23035

For the first time ever, a spacecraft on another planet has recorded sound from an entirely separate spacecraft. Learn why scientists are surprised by what they heard.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy JPL/NASA. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Nick Njegomir, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-21-25078

Evidence shows that there may have been massive flash floods on Mars billions of years ago.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy JPL/NASA.  With special thanks to Jennifer Talhelm, Laura Mullane, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.

On Perseverance's Martian "landiversary," relive the excitement of the rover's historic touchdown and hear about the fascinating discoveries that it's made — and what it could do next.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration by JPL/NASA. With special thanks to Jennifer Talhelm, Laura Mullane and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-22-21413

The Curiosity mission was supposed to last about two years, but more than a decade later the rover is still going — making remarkable discoveries all along the way.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya.

Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UA.

Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya.

On a mission like no other, Perseverance sets out to search for signs of ancient life on Mars. Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Perseverance rover image courtesy JPL/NASA. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-25438

Perched atop Perseverance, SuperCam is the rover's "Swiss Army knife," performing five kinds of types of analyses to study Mars' geology.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy JPL/NASA. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-25941

It takes a special battery to power a rover on another planet.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustration courtesy JPL/NASA. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-26209

Billions of years ago, Mars was warmer and wetter. Could a dried-up lakebed harbor secrets of past life?Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Photo illustrations courtesy NASA/JPL and NASA/JPL-Caltech/Arizona State University. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-26431

How do you drive a rover on another planet? Could life on Mars have gone underground?Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Images courtesy NASA/JPL and  NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/JHU-APL. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-26657

Living microbes play a role in forming rock varnish on Earth. Could they play a role in Martian rock varnish, too?Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Images courtesy NASA/JPL and NASA/JPL/Caltech. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-26905

Who shoots the lasers on Mars? These two scientists do.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Images courtesy NASA and NASA/JPL. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-27185

Nestled within its spacecraft millions of miles from Earth, SuperCam sent scientists an update.Mars Technica is produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Cover art by Joey Montoya. Image courtesy NASA/JPL. With special thanks to Laura Mullane, Scott Faulk, Charles Poling, Arthur Bishop and Camille Dickson.LA-UR-20-29486