Steps Again To Mars.. MAVEN by NASA..!!!

MAVEN(Mars Atmospheric and Volatile Evolution)

Launching on- Nov 18- Dec 7, 2013 

Mars Orbit Insertion- Sept 22, 2014

It is the 2nd  mission for NASA's Mars scout program, an initiative for smaller, low cost, completed missions led by a principal investigator. In response to high priority science goals listed in the National Academy of Science's 2003 decadal survey on planetary exploration, MAVEN will obtain critical measurements of Martian Atmosphers to help understand dramatic climate changes on Red planet.

Mars once had a denser atmosphere that supported liquid water on the surface. At that time, Mars might have had environmental conditions to support microbial life, as the long term presence of water is necessary to life. However due to dramatic climate change most of the Martian atmosphere was lost to space long ago. Features such as dry channels and minerals that typically form in water remain

to provide a record of Mars watery past, but the thin Martian atmosphere no longger allows water to be stable at the surface.

MAVEN will provide information on how and how fast atmospheric gases are being lost to space today, and infer from those detailed studies what happened in the past. Studying how the Martian atmosphere was lost to space can reveal clues about the impact that change had on the Martian climate , geologic, and geochemical conditions over time, all of which are important in understanding whether Mars had an environment able to support life.

The first spacecraft ever to make direct measurements of the Martian atmosphere, MAVEN will carry eight science instruments that will take measurements of the Upper Martian atmosphere during one Earth Year, equivalent to about half of a Martian year. MAVEN will also dip an altitude 80 miles above the planet to smaple Mars entire upper atmosphere. The spacecraft may also provide communications relay support for future landers and rovers on the Martian surface, such as Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissancs orbiter have done for the Mars Exploration Rovers and Phoenix.