mars

Google and Microsoft continue their highly public patent-related catfight, which is either raising awareness of the issue of overbroad software patents or just turning into an embarrassing public battle that's making us all uncomfortable. Also, facial recognition is a trap, and security researchers are rushing to unveil the real Shady Rat. Plus: Computer Love!

A NASA spacecraft in orbit around Mars has detected signs of what appear to be seasonal flows of salty water on the surface of the red planet during warmer summer months, an "eye-opening" finding that could help scientists target future missions to look for signs of microbial life in the frigid soil, researchers said today.

"We have found repeated and predictable evidence suggesting water flowing on Mars," said Michael Meyer, lead scientist with NASA's Mars Exploration office.

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched in 2005 and conducting continuous observations of Mars since November 2006, spotted the … Read more

SpaceX founder Elon Musk has a goal for humans in the next several decades: establish a colony on Mars.

Speaking yesterday at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics conference in San Diego, Musk said it's time to start working on getting humans to Mars and establishing a mode of transportation that would make it more possible.

"Ultimately, the thing that is super important in the grand scale of history is, are we on a path to becoming a multi-planet species or not?" Musk said during his keynote address, according to PC Magazine. "If we're not, that's not a very bright future. We'll just be hanging out on Earth until some eventual calamity claims us."

To get the ball rolling, Musk said, a spacecraft that can carry the payload humans need to establish a base on Mars is most important. However, Musk acknowledged, doing so will be extremely "hard." He pointed out that a Mars trip will require a craft capable of carrying "50 metric tons in a fully reusable manner." SpaceX has a Falcon Heavy rocket that can carry 12 to 15 metric tons.

The Falcon Heavy could very well become the inspirational predecessor to any vehicle that gets people to Mars. Last month, SpaceX announced that it had broken ground on the Heavy's launch site at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in Southern California. The spacecraft, which is expected to be brought to the launch site by the end of next year, can generate 140,000 pounds of thrust at sea level. And although it's meant to assist with low-Earth orbit missions, Musk said earlier this year that it could also explore space and send people to the moon.… Read more

It keeps going and going.

NASA's Opportunity rover has logged a total of more than 30 kilometers (18.64 miles) of travel on Mars since 2004, thanks to a recent drive of 482 feet (146.8 meters) that put it past the 30 km milestone.

In a report, NASA noted the distance is "50 times the distance originally planned for the mission and more than 12 times the distance racehorses will run next week at the Belmont Stakes."

The twin rover Spirit has been out of communication with Earth since March 2010 after driving 4.8 miles, … Read more

NASA today announced its plans for its next-generation deep space crew exploration vehicle.

President Barack Obama last year pulled the plug on the space agency's long-planned and multibillion dollar Constellation program. That system, which was expected to replace the Space Shuttle after its retirement this year, was thought to be central to bringing humans back to the moon, and possibly even to Mars.

But today, the space agency unveiled its plans for what it called the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV), a new spacecraft based on the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle that was related to the Constellation program.

While Obama'… Read more

NASA said today that new data from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has demonstrated that the amount of atmosphere on the Red Planet depends entirely on the tilt of its axis. This is significant, the space agency said, because that axis tilt may well impact the stability of any liquid water that exists on Mars, as well as the frequency and strength of dust storms.

In a release, NASA explained that by employing the MRO's ground-penetrating radar, researchers were able to identify a massive subsurface deposit of frozen carbon dioxide--dry ice--on Mars' southern pole. "The scientists suspect that … Read more

SkyView lets you use your iPhone camera view to create an augmented-reality view of the sky complete with constellations, planets, and satellites. Simply launch the app and point your iPhone camera skyward to see constellations and other celestial bodies where they are in real time. You also can touch planets, stars, and constellations to get more info and history at the bottom of the screen.

While you can spend plenty of time simply pointing in different directions and viewing celestial bodies, SkyView offers a few more handy features for finding what you want. You can use the search tool to … Read more

In an age of shrinking music sales and disappearing revenue, Atlantic Records is trying to put all of its resources to work.

Take Atlantic's Web site, AtlanticRecords.com, for example. Most label sites offer little more than a list of their acts and some promotional materials, but Atlantic is trying to give visitors a reason to stick around.

The label, part of Warner Music Group, dug into the vaults and began digitizing old photos, concert posters, and recorded interviews involving some of the iconic acts it has represented over 63 years. Managers unearthed signer Ray Charles' first contract (he … Read more

Links from Thursday's episode of Loaded:

Spotify and Shazam team up to help you find and purchase music

Sony may be announcing a new PSP soon

Facebook teams up with the Amber Alert system

Google will start selling ads on music videos in mobile YouTube

Google launches Google Places for iPhone

Microsoft launches a Web and app building site called WebMatrix

A new report in the Journal of Cosmology discusses the specifics of mating in space