This mosaic is made up of more than 100 images captured by NASA’s Viking 1 orbiter, which operated around Mars from 1976 to 1980. The scar across the center of the planet is the vast Valles Marineris canyon system.NASA has selected nine companies to develop concepts that could aid agency science missions to Mars down the road.
"We're in an exciting new era of space exploration, with rapid growth of commercial interest and capabilities," Eric Ianson, director of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, said in a"Now is the right time for NASA to begin looking at how public-private partnerships could support science at Mars in the coming decades," he added.This idea is not new.
"These studies could potentially lead to future requests for proposals but do not constitute a NASA commitment," agency officials said in Wednesday's statement.