What is not controversial is that NASA needs a new spacecraft capable of relaying communications from Mars to Earth. NASA’s best communications relay today is the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which ...

Mars exploration is heating up. NASA eyes sample returns and crewed landings by the 2030s, but its current relay satellites -- some decades past design life -- struggle with data traffic from rovers, ...

Only companies that worked on the Mars Sample Return program need apply, narrowing the field to a handful of space industry heavyweights. NASA is looking for ways to improve the communications network ...