News archive

News archive

Calibrated VMC data now available in the Planetary Science Archive

Data from the Visual Monitoring Camera (VMC) instrument onboard ESA's Mars Express is now available in the Planetary Science Archives (PSA). The data come from observations taken of Mars between 2007 to mid-2020, as well as of the release of the Beagle 2 lander in 2003, and are calibrated for scientific use.

Published: 16 October 2020
Mars Express helps uncover the secrets of Perseverance landing site

Two studies based on ESA's Mars Express observations of Jezero crater, the future landing site for NASA's 2020 Mars Perseverance rover, have shed light on how and when this intriguing area formed – and identified the regions most likely to reveal signs of ancient life.

Published: 1 July 2020
ESA's Mars orbiters did not see latest Curiosity methane burst

In June, NASA's Curiosity rover reported the highest burst of methane recorded yet, but neither ESA's Mars Express nor the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter recorded any signs of the illusive gas, despite flying over the same location at a similar time.

Published: 13 November 2019
Mars Express matches methane spike measured by Curiosity
A reanalysis of data collected by ESA's Mars Express during the first 20 months of NASA's Curiosity mission found one case of correlated methane detection, the first time an in-situ measurement has been independently confirmed from orbit.
Published: 1 April 2019
First evidence of planet-wide groundwater system on Mars
Mars Express has revealed the first geological evidence of a system of ancient interconnected lakes that once lay deep beneath the Red Planet's surface, five of which may contain minerals crucial to life.
Published: 28 February 2019
Mars Express keeps an eye on curious cloud
Since 13 September, ESA's Mars Express has been observing the evolution of an elongated cloud formation hovering in the vicinity of the 20 km-high Arsia Mons volcano, close to the planet's equator.
Published: 25 October 2018
Mars Express detects liquid water hidden under planet's south pole
Radar data collected by ESA's Mars Express point to a pond of liquid water buried under layers of ice and dust in the south polar region of Mars.
Published: 25 July 2018
Martian atmosphere behaves as one
New research using a decade of data from ESA’s Mars Express has found clear signs of the complex martian atmosphere acting as a single, interconnected system, with processes occurring at low and mid levels significantly affecting those seen higher up.
Published: 18 July 2018
Leaky atmosphere linked to lightweight planet
The Red Planet's low gravity and lack of magnetic field makes its outermost atmosphere an easy target to be swept away by the solar wind, but new evidence from ESA's Mars Express spacecraft shows that the Sun's radiation may play a surprising role in its escape.
Published: 8 February 2018
Webcam on Mars Express surveys high-altitude clouds
An unprecedented catalogue of more than 21 000 images taken by a webcam on ESA's Mars Express is proving its worth as a science instrument, providing a global survey of unusual high-altitude cloud features on the Red Planet.
Published: 17 October 2017
New tools for exploring the surface of Mars: the Planetary SUrface Portal (PSUP) and the iMars webGIS

In past decades, spacecraft have sent back huge amounts of complex data about Mars, providing a wealth of information about the planet. More than ever, the scientific community needs a way to sift through, compare, and analyse these data, prompting the development of two new tools for exploring the surface of the Red Planet.

Published: 7 September 2017
The moving Martian bow shock
As the energetic particles of the solar wind speed across interplanetary space, their motion is modified by objects in their path. A study, based on data from ESA's Mars Express orbiter, has thrown new light on a surprising interaction between the planet Mars and supersonic particles in the solar wind.
Published: 22 August 2017
New evidence for a warmer and wetter early Mars
A recent study from ESA's Mars Express and NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provides new evidence for a warm young Mars that hosted water across a geologically long timescale, rather than in short episodic bursts – something that has important consequences for habitability and the possibility of past life on the planet.
Published: 6 December 2016
Mars' ionosphere shaped by crustal magnetic fields
Scattered pockets of magnetism across the surface of Mars have a significant influence on the planet's upper atmosphere, according to observations from ESA's Mars Express. Understanding these effects may be crucial for ensuring safe radio communications between Mars and Earth and, eventually, between explorers on the surface of the planet.
Published: 3 November 2016
Mars Webcam goes pro
A modest 'webcam' on Mars Express has proven useful for outreach, education and citizen-science. Now ESA have decided to adopt it as a professional science instrument.
Published: 25 May 2016
Are mystery Mars plumes caused by space weather?
Mysterious high-rise clouds seen appearing suddenly in the martian atmosphere on a handful of occasions may be linked to space weather, say Mars Express scientists.
Published: 23 May 2016
The rise and fall of Martian lakes
There is a wealth of evidence, collected over the past few decades, that suggests liquid water was abundant in the early history of Mars – one of our nearest and most studied neighbours. A recent study, using data from several spacecraft operating at Mars, paints a detailed picture of the rise and fall of standing bodies of water in a region of...
Published: 10 May 2016
Shining a light on the aurora of Mars
ESA's Mars Express has shed new light on the Red Planet's rare ultraviolet aurora by combining for the first time remote observations with in situ measurements of electrons hitting the atmosphere.
Published: 5 November 2015
Announcement of Opportunity for Interdisciplinary Scientists in the Mars Express mission
This Announcement of Opportunity invites the scientific community to participate in the Mars Express mission in the role of Interdisciplinary Scientists, to foster the data exploitation and augment the overall scientific return of the mission. The deadline for receipt of mandatory Letters of Intent is 15 November 2015, 12:00 noon CET; the...
Published: 15 October 2015
Have you ever used a camera on board an interplanetary spacecraft?
In May, the 'webcam' on board Mars Express will be available for public imaging requests. We are inviting schools, science clubs and youth groups to submit proposals for one of eight opportunities to image another planet.
Published: 6 March 2015
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