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Mars Express and Beagle 2 news archive

Mars Express reaches new orbit around Red Planet The European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft performed a major maneuver Tuesday, changing its initial "capture" orbit achieved on Christmas morning to a new orbit needed for the probe's scientific investigations of the Red Planet. FULL STORY [Posted: Dec. 30] MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates!

Obstacle found at heart of Beagle landing zone The first clear view of the specific area where the British Beagle 2 lander should have touched down Christmas Day has revealed a one-kilometer crater dead center in the target landing zone, but officials are quick to say the discovery doesn't dash their optimism of finding the missing craft. FULL STORY [Posted: Dec. 29]

Team looks at scenarios to recover the silent Beagle A "tiger team" of engineers has been assembled to investigate why all attempts since Christmas morning have failed to locate the British Beagle 2 lander supposedly sitting on the surface of Mars. FULL STORY [Posted: Dec. 27]

Tiny Beagle lander still hasn't phoned home While remaining steadfast in their belief that the Beagle 2 lander survived its journey to Mars, project officials said this morning that the best shot at hearing from the craft won't occur before January 4. FULL STORY [Posted: Dec. 27]

Odyssey orbiter's view of the Beagle landing site NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft, which is listening for transmissions of the still-missing British Beagle 2 lander, snapped this image of the basin where the tiny craft should have arrived Christmas Day. The photo was taken by the orbiter in advance of Beagle's planned landing. FULL STORY

Mars Express a success, but no one hears Beagle's bark In what was obviously a bittersweet Christmas Day for planetary scientists around the world, a tiny lander disappeared without a trace while its counterpart successfully glided into orbit around the Red Planet, becoming the first European spacecraft to take up residence at another world. FULL STORY [Posted: Dec. 25] MISSION ARCHIVE

Beagle 2 released to hunt for life on Martian surface With the Christmas Day arrival at the Red Planet fast approaching, the tiny British Beagle 2 lander was successfully cast free from the Mars Express space probe Friday. Beagle 2 is bound for surface to conduct a host of experiments including some to look for evidence of past life. FULL STORY [Dec. 19]

Mars Express snaps its first view of Red Planet The European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft has taken image of its destination from a distance of about 5.5 million kilometres. This is a very unusual view of Mars because the planet is illuminated in a way never seen from Earth. Mars Express arrives in orbit around the Red Planet on Christmas Day. FULL STORY [Dec. 3]

Europe's Mars-bound space probes near arrival The Mars Express spacecraft, despite a series of intense solar flares that occurred late October-early November in active sunspots regions, is in good health and is operating normally. FULL STORY [Nov. 30]

Mars Express power glitch a minor annoyance, ESA says Europe's Mars Express orbiter is now over one month into its marathon cruise to the Red Planet, and although the ground team has discovered a few of the probe's quirks in testing, project officials contend the spacecraft is performing well. FULL STORY [July 8]

Clamps away: Mars Express eases its grip on its lander Mars Express engineers breathed a sigh of relief Thursday morning at the European Space Operations Centre, in Germany. If a particularly delicate operation had not proceeded as planned, it would have been impossible to deploy the Beagle 2 lander on arrival at Mars. FULL STORY [June 5]

Europe's first adventure to Mars successfully launched Kicking off a string of Mars launches this month, a Russian Soyuz booster did its job Monday as it placed the first European mission to the Red Planet onto the path that will see it arrive late this year amidst a flurry of international science missions. FULL STORY [June 2] MISSION STATUS CENTER MARS EXPRESS PREVIEW STORY BEAGLE 2 OVERVIEW STORY

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: SOYUZ ROCKET LIFTS OFF WITH MARS EXPRESS QT VIDEO: CLOSE-UP VIEW OF ROCKET BLASTING OFF QT VIDEO: COMMENTS FROM DIR. OF ESA SCIENCE PROGRAMS QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Europe shoots for Mars with robotic orbiter and lander An unprecedented international scientific assault on Earth's cosmic neighbor will be launched in June as four spacecraft are fired to Mars, beginning next week with Europe's first mission to the Red Planet. FULL STORY [May 28] ORBITER'S SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS ILLUSTRATION OF MARS EXPRESS' TRAJECTORY SOYUZ ROCKET FACT SHEET

The Beagle has landed... Well, not quite but the innovative Beagle 2 will soon be on its way to Mars aboard European Space Agency's Mars Express. Once at the Red Planet, it may turn up evidence of past or present life. FULL STORY [May 28]

Europe's mission to the Red Planet nearing launch The European Space Agency's Mars Express mission to the Red Planet has passed its flight readiness review in preparation for launch June 2 atop a Russian Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Central Asia. FULL STORY [May 5]

Drilling on Mars When ESA's Mars Express reaches the Red Planet in December 2003, there will be a drill on board its Beagle 2 lander. This drill will dig into the surface to take samples of the Martian rocks. Who would imagine that the creativity of an enthusiastic dentist is behind a 'cosmic' drill? FULL STORY [April 15]

Mars Rover mission patch

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Exploring Mars

Astronomy Now is pleased to announce the publication of Exploring Mars. The very best images of Mars taken by orbiting spacecraft and NASA's Spirit and Opportunity rovers fill up the 98 glossy pages of this special edition!

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Apollo 11 special patch

Special collectors' patch marking the 35th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing is now available.

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Inside Apollo mission control

An insider's view of how Apollo flight controllers operated and just what they faced when events were crucial.

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The ultimate Apollo 11 DVD

This exceptional chronicle of the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing mission features new digital transfers of film and television coverage unmatched by any other.

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Next ISS crew

Own a little piece of history with this official patch for the International Space Station's Expedition 11 crew. We'll ship yours today!

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Apollo 12 tribute DVD set

New! Featuring the jovial crew of Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon and Alan Bean, the Apollo 12 mission was struck by lightning shortly after liftoff but proceeded on the second successful exploration voyage to the lunar surface. This three-disc DVD brings the mission to life with extraordinary detail.

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Fallen Heroes special patch

This special 12-inch embroidered patch commemorates the U.S. astronauts who made the ultimate sacrifice, honoring the crews of Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia.

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Women in Space

Women of Space: Cool Careers on the Final Frontier is for girls, young women, and anyone else interested in learning about exciting careers in space exploration. Includes CD-ROM.

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Mars rover poster

This new poster features some of the best pictures from NASA's amazing Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity.

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Final Shuttle Mission Patch

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The crew emblem for the final space shuttle mission is now available in our store. Get this piece of history!

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STS-134 Patch

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The final planned flight of space shuttle Endeavour is symbolized in the official embroidered crew patch for STS-134. Available in our store!

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Ares 1-X Patch

The official embroidered patch for the Ares 1-X rocket test flight, is available for purchase.

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Apollo Collage

This beautiful one piece set features the Apollo program emblem surrounded by the individual mission logos.

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Project Orion

The Orion crew exploration vehicle is NASA's first new human spacecraft developed since the space shuttle a quarter-century earlier. The capsule is one of the key elements of returning astronauts to the Moon.

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Fallen Heroes Patch Collection

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