[FPSPACE] Future of Mars Exploration: What's Next?

[LARRY KLAES]

Future of Mars Exploration: What's Next?

By Andrea Thompson

Senior Writer

posted: 4 June 2008, 7:00 a.m. ET

Now that NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is settled in on the arctic plains of 
Mars, taking pictures and starting to gather samples, space agencies all 
over the world are planning and building the next robots and gadgets they 
plan to send to probe the mysteries of the red planet.

NASA plans to waste no time in getting back to Mars after Phoenix finishes 
its three-month mission. By September or October of next year, launch is set 
for the Mars Science Laboratory, a beefed-up rover that will further explore 
the Martian surface (it will be the largest vehicle ever sent to Mars).

And Americans won't be the only ones visiting the red planet: The European 
Space Agency (ESA) is currently working on its own rover, dubbed ExoMars, 
which would be equipped to scout out signs of past or present life on Mars. 
The Chinese and Russian space agencies are also collaborating on a mission 
to the planet's asteroid-like moon, Phobos.

Full article here:

http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/080604-tw-mars-next.html