Red Rock

Check out this amazing High-Res Photo Showing an outcrop rising From Mars.

 Staggering!

Do you think humans will ever stand near it? 

 https://share.google/xiaykGy3o3mwSDF8f 

A Mars a Day

 I'm the late 60's Wernher Von Braun one day had a dream of spaceships going to Mars. 

Artists painted it like this gorgeous pair of boostered craft from the Marshall Space Flight Center.

US artist Supreme Bob McCall captured them as well ( copyright Robert McCall NASA)

 An equally superb duet of white, black and gold Mars ships commissioned by NASA ( there maybe an artist's name in the right corner)

And here's another gorgeous artwork - of the eventual Mars lander - from the Marshall Space Flight Center. I love it. With it's little ramp, stowed rover and different rooms.

I'd have made this from a screwball ice cream tub as a kid!

Climb Every Mountain?

I love this illustration I saw online of Olympus Mons. The reds and browns really convey an alien mountain, the highest in our system. With that flat top, there's a bit of Devil's Tower in there too a la Close Encounters. 

I wonder if any human will ever actually climb it?

The Hills of Mars

Hard to believe but Curiosity has been trundling round Mars now for 13 years! 

I've followed the little rover from time to time and one of my favourite NASA images this season is this one from September.

It a fabulous vista showing a range of craggy ridges off Mount Sharp with the 'boxworks' in the foreground. 

So stunning yet it could be the East coast of Yorkshire near me! 

In a world of uncertain chaos I'm always grateful for the work of NASA and the thought of Curiosity up there on Mars makes me smile.

For more info on the image:

Curiosity Blog, Sols 4655-4660: Boxworks With a View - NASA Science https://share.google/glJpyZgkdd3eBu0EE

Red Planet Transport

Hi Woodsy

         Back in 2021 and 2022 Hot Wheels released a model in their Super Rigs series called Red Planet Transport. 

This series comprises a large transport vehicle, and a smaller vehicle as the load.

In this case it was a space exploration vehicle, which closely resembles the Matchbox S.E.V./Chariot. 

The main differences being the Hot Wheels tractor unit has a longer cab, and only four wheels instead of six.

It is towing a large, two-wheeled trailer, with a lift-up rear end. There is therefore no loading ramp for the smaller vehicle to drive up.

The load is a regular Hot Wheels Mainline model called Da’Kar, which came out in 2003, and was modified in 2014. It is described as a futuristic Paris to Dakar rally car.

The original Red Planet Transport models were mainly white, with orange and black trim, and orange tinted windows. The base of the tractor unit was chromed, the base of the trailer was black plastic, and the Da’Kar was orange.

In 2021 there was also a darker version, which appears to have been mainly gold (?) and black. This had red and black trim, with red tinted windows.

As these models came out during all the lock-downs, I never saw them in the shops, since most shops were closed at the time. However the set has been re-issued as part of the 2025 Super Rigs line.

There are some differences in the card; and the name Red Planet Transport is now in the lower left hand corner, rather than the lower right hand corner. The finish of the actual models seems to be the same, and I do not know how to tell the re-issues from the originals.

This makes a great companion piece for the Matchbox S.E.V./Chariot models. But all these Matchbox and Hot Wheels space models tend to be short-lived and hard to find – so grab them when you see them, or miss out.

Here are the regular and Matchbox Collectors editions of the NASA S.E.V./Chariot six-wheel model.

https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2020/04/the-nasa-moon-chariot.html

https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-nasa-sev-chariot.html

Four photos of my 2025 Transport set; with two photos of the original versions from Worthpoint.

Anyone got any?

Paul Adams from New Zealand

NASA: the Mars Report: Six Decades of Exploration

View Web Version | February 2025 The Mars Report from NASA — your source from the Red Planet, continuing six decades of unparalleled exploration and scientific discoveries. This newsletter will bring you mission updates, spacecraft news, science findings, unique Mars imagery — and a vision for the humanity-defining possibilities NASA's presence on Mars will unlock.   FEATURED Planning the First Launch Ever from Another Planet NASA is on track to return scientifically selected samples from Mars, announcing plans to proceed towards confirmation. CATCH UP Keep Track of a Busy Planet Nine spacecraft explore Mars right now. NASA operates five of them — two surface rovers and three orbiters — and you can track their progress at any time. They talk to each other, and help each other talk to us, relaying their messages and data streams to Earth. EXPLORE Weather Report: Ice Avalanches with a Chance of Explosive Geysers Martian new year brings dramatic changes — exploding jets of gas, windblown dunes, and more. We track it all from afar, with spacecraft like NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. WATCH MORE ON MARS Meet the Sample: 'Silver Mountain' Perseverance rumbled out of Jezero Crater to explore the uncharted rim, discovering a fresh vantage point — and a very unusual rock. Meet the rover's 26th Martian sample, "Silver Mountain." VIEW THE COLLECTION Another Record: Going the Distance Ingenuity, the plucky helicopter grounded by a broken rotor, managed one more distance record — 1.8 miles for its last communication with the Perseverance rover on Nov. 26, the farthest communication between two vehicles on the surface of Mars. ALL ABOUT INGENUITY Did You Know? Up a Dusty Trail As of January 2025, Perseverance has rolled 20.35 miles (32.76 kilometers) to collect 26 samples of rock and regolith as well as one air sample. DRIVE ON WITH PERSEVERANCE IMAGE OF THE DAY Olympus Mons Mars' Olympus Mons, a volcano nearly three times higher than Mount Everest, was featured in a recent "Celebrity Jeopardy" question. VIEW IMAGE DOWNLOADS Free posters. Collect them all. MAVEN 10th Anniversary Spirit and Opportunity 20th Anniversary Curiosity 10th Anniversary ROVER MISSION UPDATES Get the latest details, direct from mission team members. Perseverance Blog READ THE BLOG Curiosity Blog READ THE BLOG JOIN THE CONVERSATION Explore Mars Facebook: @NASAPersevere, @MarsCuriosity, @NASAMars X: @NASAPersevere, @MarsCuriosity, @NASAMars

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Catching the Worm

 I took this shot on holiday in Hornsea as the tide was fading on the beach.

 I added some darkness for effect.

The little flat topped sand-worm mound reminded me of this snap of Olympus Mons on Mars taken by Mars Express I think (Wikipedia).

Jeepers, let's hope there's no ginormous Dune-like sand-worm beneath it just as we plan to visit the red planet! 

The biggest mountain in the solar system and it's so close to us! 

FROST ON MARS!

Just watching the news that morning frost has been seen on the mountains of Mars!

Polar ice was known about but equatorial frost wasn't. 

How incredibly cool is that!

One hundred and fifty thousand tons of ice every sunrise at the top of the highest peaks in the solar system!

mars express/ news bank

If you had all of Gerry Anderson's vehicles, including Project SWORD and chuck in SpaceX/ Golden Astronaut too, which ones would you use to a. get to Mars and b. mine that ice at the top of giant mountains?

Is there a better toy space fleet you could send? Explorer12? Starcom! Multimac?

Current spacecraft will take 8 months to get there. How fast could you be?

Thoughts, plans, drawings and photos welcomed!

Goodbye Ingenuity

 NASA's Martian copter is no more.

It's reddened  rotoring is sadly over, joining Man's scrapyard of dead space tech.

So long chopper.

MARS HANGAR NIGHT

 Its the Martian Night on my home-made Mars Hangar and the fleet needs bringing in.

Is the modest crew up to the job before the spooky Mysterons wake?

The Hangar has gone offline!