I am very disappointed as a space enthusiast ,its a great loss for JAXA and the space community.Venus is in dire need of further exploration and this failure is a big setback.But keep on trying...space exploration is not all about success.

looks like it!I agree

It was mentioned that we could encounter different rock types as early as Santa MARIA!! I'm assuming they must have some data from orbit to have mentioned that possibility!

Any sign of Phyllosilicates?

Just read the mer update...it says that hydrated minerals could be seen as close as Santa Maria...how much lower is opportunity downslope at this current position compared to the landing spot at eagle crater?

Huge cloud formations over the equatorial region!

We're starting to see seasonal change in cloud formations over both hemispheres in line with expectations...more clouds over the southern hemisphere and relatively clear skies over the north pole.....i'm curious when we'll start seeing changes on the surface as a result of this!

Its a great pleasure to have RLORENZ s thoughts on this topic!So here is my next question for you:what is expected to happen in the equatorial latitudes with changing seasons...i know that most of equatorial flats are covered with dunes and thus seem to be mostly dry...but we've seen signs of flooding eg huygens landing area any chance we could see signs of fluvial activity in the lower latitudes??

I think this subject merits a new topic and expect it to be topping the list in the near future as Cassini tracks further changes on Titan with the shifting seasons!
So it seems that Ontario Lacus is shrinking as autumn approaches.No changes have been detected as yet with the northern lakes.If the southern lake is shrinking,does that mean that northern lakes should be getting bigger as time passes with the coming spring in the northern hemisphere?

To me it looks like an' island' which eventually got surrounded by lava!Very much like the Columbia Hills in Gusev Crater.So the elevated unit(part of crater rim) should be an older geologic unit compared to the lower areas surrounding it.Any idea as to minerals identified in this unit??

I wouldnt be surprised if Pluto has geysers like Triton.

Any plans for viewing Pluto between now and pluto encounter by Hubble?

sol 2156 would be today?

So if I understand correctly,they seem to be pessimistic about ever getting Spirit out of the sand trap.

Curious to know what the Mars Rover team think now about Spirits chances of roving again!

Time to update spirits route map?

Great news!

Did I miss something but could anyone find me a news source from ESA stating that Venus express did find evidence suggestive of recent and ongoing volcanism??

Spirit and Opportunity have been a wonderful experience for all of us sitting at home and kind of living on Mars thru the pictures sent .I'm sure they have given a lot of lessons to MARS engineers to improve and rectify technical problems for future rovers.I'm hoping the delay in sending MSL will allow more time that such problems are anticipated and dealt with .

I'm all for the Venus mission..its about time we get proper views of the venusian surface!

Merry Xmas everyone! 7 hours to go in Malta!

Whats the coloured representing?Topography or geologic units?What does the green area represent?

I'm no geologist but olivine would mean this rock was never in contact with water so i suppose that this rock should be older than meridiani.It would be interesting to note whether any olivine was detected at the bottom of deep craters in Meridiani representing an older geological layer prior to the water history in this region..assuming that this olivne rock originated from Meridiani and not from an another region.Any suggestions guys?

How can they be so sure that the super earths detected represent one planetary body ie.could it not be that 8 earth masses could represent 2 terrestrial planets and other planetary dust the likes of asteroids in orbit round the parent star?!

For sure it would be sensible if we're sending a mission to Europa, it should initially consist of an orbiter equipped with high resolution camera ,VIMS and most important ice penetrating radar to be able to determine the thickness of the icy crust and variations in thickness.This would spot the best locations where to attempt drilling thru the Europan crust for access to the underlying watery ocean.Follow up mission including hydrobot could then be properly designed depending on the findings from the orbiter mission.

PS:Havent read Greenbergs book on Europa, but has the role of impacts been given importance as to causing oxygen enrichment to the water ocean??