Mars Methane Lasts Less Than A Year

Map of methane concentrations in Autumn (first martian year observed). Peak emissions fall over Tharsis (home to the Solar System's largest volcano, Olympus Mons), the Arabia Terrae plains and the Elysium region, also the site of volcanos. Bottom: True color map of Mars. Credit: NASA/Universita del Salento.

Laser Tool for Studying Mars Rocks Delivered to JPL
Pasadena CA (JPL) Sep 23 - The NASA Mars Science Laboratory Project's rover, Curiosity, will carry a newly delivered laser instrument named ChemCam to reveal what elements are present in rocks and soils on Mars up to 7 meters (23 feet) away from the rover.

The laser zaps a pinhead-sized area on the target, vaporizing it. A spectral analyzer then examines the flash of light produced to identify what elements are present. The completed and tested instrument has been shipped to JPL from Los Alamos for installation onto the Curiosity rover at JPL.

ChemCam was conceived, designed and built by a U.S.-French team led by Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, N.M.; NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (the French national space agency); and the Centre d'Etude Spatiale des Rayonnements at the Observatoire Midi-Pyrenees, Toulouse, France.