Mars Archives

Here you’ll find fragments of Mars arranged in the only order we know how—imperfectly.Some records are factual, logged by rovers and researchers. Others slipped in through rumor and folklore. Together they form a living archive: histories unearthed, present conditions noted, unclaimed objects filed, and phenomena still unfolding.We record what we can, though Mars may remember differently.
It keeps its own records—we’re only catching up.

• ask the records

Mars: 1500 BCE — The age of curiousity

c. 1500 BCE — Egyptian Star Tables
Earliest surviving records of Mars as a wandering red star.1609 CE — Galileo Galilei
Turned a telescope toward Mars; saw a small red disk rather than a point of light.1965 CE — Mariner 4 Flyby
First close-up photographs of another planet: 22 images showing craters and a barren surface.1976 CE — Viking 1 & 2 Landers
First successful landings on Mars; conducted experiments searching for life. Results: inconclusive.2004 CE — Spirit & Opportunity Rovers Twin rovers; one lasted 6 years, the other nearly 15.2012 CE — Curiosity Rover
Largest rover to date, still active in Gale Crater.

Mars: Current + Near Future

2018 CE — InSight Lander
Measured “marsquakes” and the planet’s inner layers.2021 CE — Perseverance Rover
Exploring Jezero Crater, collecting samples for return to Earth. Companion to Ingenuity, the first helicopter to fly on another world.2021–2024 CE — Ingenuity Helicopter
Designed for 5 flights, completed over 70 before retirement.2020s CE — Sample Return (In Progress)
International plans underway to bring Martian soil to Earth in the early 2030s.2028 CE (planned) — ExoMars Rover (ESA)
Europe’s first Mars rover, delayed but still bound for the red planet.2030s CE (projected) — Human Missions
NASA and partners preparing for crewed exploration.

Filed reports of artifacts without owner

unclaimed Objects on mars

Perseverance Parachute Fragment (2021)
Recovered in Jezero Crater by Ingenuity’s camera. Bright fabric torn by entry, no claimant identified.
Filed under: “Descent debris.”Spirit Rover Wheel (2006)
One wheel locked and dragged for years, carving trenches in Gusev Crater before Spirit fell silent. The mark remains; the owner does not.
Filed under: “Burden carried, then dropped.”InSight Heat Probe (“The Mole”) (2019)
Designed to burrow deep, but stalled near the surface. Left protruding, abandoned to dust.
Filed under: “Unfinished attempt.”Half of a Chessboard
Recovered near an unnamed ridge. Pawns absent; strategies unresolved.
Filed under: “Incomplete games.”A Cracked Visor Reflecting Two Sunsets
No record of its delivery. Reflection intact; identity unclear.
Filed under: “Awaiting claimant.”

Perseverance Descent debris, Jezero Crater (2021)

a century of Archives

1924 — Opposition of Mars
A global wave of radio listening experiments attempted to detect Martian signals. No transmissions received.1965 — Mariner 4 Flyby
First spacecraft to photograph Mars close-up. Twenty-two grainy images showed a cratered, moon-like world, reshaping public imagination.1971 — Mars 3 (USSR)
First soft landing on Mars; transmission ceased after 20 seconds.1976 — Viking 1 & 2
First successful landers; conducted biology experiments searching for life. Results remain inconclusive.1996 — Mars Global Surveyor
Orbited Mars for nearly a decade, mapping the planet’s surface in detail and tracking seasonal changes.2008 — Phoenix Mars Lander
Confirmed water-ice in the Martian arctic. Instruments ceased after encroaching winter.2018 — InSight Mission
First to measure “marsquakes,” probing the planet’s interior. Recorded seismic activity until its solar panels fell silent.2021 — Tianwen-1 & Zhurong (China)
China’s first Mars orbiter, lander, and rover — marking a new era of international exploration. Rover Zhurong entered hibernation in 2022.

records of ongoing events

Upcoming Flyby: Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Passing Near Mars — Sept, 2025
🛸ESA’s Mars orbiters—Mars Express & ExoMars TGO—are preparing to observe this rare comet during its close approach to Mars expected October 3rd (~30 million km)13-Year Milestone: Curiosity Learns New Tricks — Aug 2025
🛸Engineers find innovative ways to repurpose the aging rover’s instruments, ensuring continued science return well into its second decadeInSight Reveals Ancient Architectural Remnants — Aug 2025
🛸Seismic data from InSight has uncovered dense blobs beneath Mars’ surface—likely ancient protoplanetary fragments preserved in the mantleRobotic Cave Mapping Trials for Future Mars Habitat — August 2025
🛸European AI robots mapped a lava cave on Earth as an analog for Martian shelter—key tech for future human habitationCuriosity Finds Heavy Organic Molecules in Gale Crater — Spring 2025
🛸The rover has detected the heaviest organic molecules yet (decane to dodecane) preserved in sedimentary rock—possibly indicating long-buried prebiotic chemistryMars Express Redefines the Red Planet — Feb–May 2025
🛸ESA found that Mars’ red color likely stems from iron oxides with water (ferrihydrite), not from dry hematite. Software upgrades now extend Mars Express’s life toward 2034

image of the week

Perseverance - Aug  31-Sept 6 2025
The public-selected “Image of the Week,” from NASA

environmental records: shifts through time

c. 4.0–3.5 Billion Years Ago
A thick atmosphere sustained rivers, lakes, and perhaps shallow seas. Clay minerals formed in liquid water.c. 3.5–3.0 Billion Years Ago
Magnetic field lost; atmosphere thinned as solar wind stripped it away. Surface water retreated below ground or froze.c. 2.0–1.0 Billion Years Ago
Volcanism waned, releasing less gas to the atmosphere. Climate cooled; dust storms left seasonal scars.c. 500 Million Years Ago
Ice caps advanced and receded with orbital cycles. Evidence stored in layered polar deposits.Recent Epoch (Last Few Million Years)
Periodic shifts in tilt caused bursts of localized melting and fresh ice layering.Present Day
Atmosphere at ~1% Earth’s pressure, composed mostly of CO₂. Water exists only as ice or vapor.

planetary phenomena

Global Dust Storms
Planet-wide storms rise without warning, darkening skies for weeks or months.Blue Sunsets
Dust scatters red light, leaving only blue near the setting SunPhobos Eclipses
Mars’ inner moon passes swiftly across the Sun, casting a fleeting shadow. Duration: less than 30 secondsDeimos Ascents
The outer moon rises slowly, faint and distant, completing an orbit every 30 hoursPolar Ice Caps
Composed of water ice and seasonal CO₂ frost, expanding in winter, shrinking in summerAuroras Without Magnetosphere
Charged particles from the Sun strike the thin atmosphere directly, producing diffuse auroras visible across much of the plane

public submissions

Have a record to add? Submit curiosities, new research, or fragments you believe belong in the Archives. Each submission will be reviewed and—if accepted—filed into the Hall.