Guide
Everything our newsroom has reported on astrobiology, drawn from 2 original stories.
The Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission is a joint NASA-ESA effort to bring Martian rock and soil samples to Earth for the first time.
Source: How the 2026 Mars Sample Return Mission Works: A Step-by-Step ExplainerThe mission utilizes a complex three-stage relay: collection by Perseverance, launch by the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), and orbital capture by the Earth Return Orbiter.
Source: How the 2026 Mars Sample Return Mission Works: A Step-by-Step ExplainerRogue planets may outnumber stars in the Milky Way, countlessly drifting in the interstellar void.
Source: The Silence of the Silicates: The Search for Dark Life on Rogue PlanetsThick hydrogen atmospheres can insulate these worlds, maintaining liquid water via geothermal heat.
Source: The Silence of the Silicates: The Search for Dark Life on Rogue Planets“Instead of taking the lab to Mars, we are bringing Mars home to our most powerful instruments.”
The mission uses the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), a small two-stage solid rocket landed on the surface, to blast the sample container into orbit.
Source: How the 2026 Mars Sample Return Mission Works: A Step-by-Step ExplainerThe samples are planned to land at the Utah Test and Training Range within a specialized, high-durability containment capsule.
Source: How the 2026 Mars Sample Return Mission Works: A Step-by-Step ExplainerPerseverance is equipped with 43 titanium sample tubes, intended to be filled with a diverse set of rock cores, regolith, and atmospheric samples.
Source: How the 2026 Mars Sample Return Mission Works: A Step-by-Step ExplainerA rogue planet is a planetary-mass object that does not orbit a star. They drift through interstellar space, having been ejected from their original solar systems by gravitational interactions.
Source: The Silence of the Silicates: The Search for Dark Life on Rogue PlanetsThey stay warm through radiogenic heating (the decay of elements in the core) and insulation from thick atmospheres, often rich in hydrogen, which acts as a powerful greenhouse gas.
Source: The Silence of the Silicates: The Search for Dark Life on Rogue PlanetsAstronomers use gravitational microlensing, observing how the planet’s gravity bends the light of a distant star as it passes in front of it.
Source: The Silence of the Silicates: The Search for Dark Life on Rogue PlanetsHumanity's most ambitious retrieval project involves a multi-stage interplanetary relay to bring Martian soil back to Earth.
Beyond the light of any sun, billions of 'orphan' worlds may harbor the universe’s most resilient ecosystems.
Humanity's most ambitious retrieval project involves a multi-stage interplanetary relay to bring Martian soil back to Earth.
Beyond the light of any sun, billions of 'orphan' worlds may harbor the universe’s most resilient ecosystems.
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