Mars Rovers
Using robotic rovers, we’re exploring the red planet. Try maneuvering a rover and controlling a robotic arm on a simulated Martian landscape. Program the rover’s actions with simple commands, and operate it over obstacles.Direct control of robotic probes on other planets, though, isn’t very feasible. The reason is the sheer distance between planets. For instance, take the Pathfinder rover on Mars. Even at the planet’s closest alignment, a message sent from Earth to Mars would take over 8 minutes. By that time, the rover might have fallen off a cliff.
Robotic probes and rovers are now equipped with semi-autonomous programming that allows them to steer themselves, make course corrections, and work themselves out of tight situations.
Read About Past, Present, and Future Mars Missions:
Mars rover home page - Jet Propulsion Laboratory's rover home page
Planetary Society - Covers all missions to Mars
European Space Agency
Japan's Mars orbiter Nozomi
Past, Present, and Future Mars Missions - NASA's Page
Red Rover Goes to Mars
Getting students involved in real space missions. A partnership between The Planetary Society and the LEGO Company.
Athena
Mission updates, Mars facts, lesson plans for teachers, and activities for children featuring Bill Nye.
Schoolhouse Rocks
Send a rock from your region for comparison against those found on the Red Planet.
Stardust
Stardust is the spacecraft that returned samples of a comet to Earth in January 2006.
Make a Mars Globe
The USGS Astrogeology Research Program has maps and globe projects.
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