Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is a man-made spacecraft represented in the Solar System, the region of space around the Sun, our star, within the universe. Its catalogue reference body is Mars. Explore its story and purpose, then find the spacecraft on the interactive 3D space map.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter — Maps Mars and supports surface exploration through reconnaissance and communications.

Mission and scientific objectives
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is associated with NASA. Maps Mars and supports surface exploration through reconnaissance and communications. The mission type is Mars orbiter.

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter searches for evidence that water persisted on the surface of Mars for a long period of time.

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter blasted off from Cape Canaveral in 2005, on a search for evidence that water persisted on the surface of Mars for long periods of time. While other Mars missions have shown that water flowed across the surface in Mars' history, it remains a mystery whether water was ever around long enough to provide a habitat for life.

Celebrating NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s 20th Anniversary: Crater Near Sirenum Fossae

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captures a detailed view of a relatively fresh crater in this image released on June…

Meet the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Studying the History of Water on Mars

After a seven-month cruise to Mars and six months of aerobraking to reach its science orbit, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter began seeking out the history of water on Mars with its science instruments. The instruments zoom in for extreme close-up photography of the Martian surface, analyze minerals, look for subsurface water, trace how much dust and water are distributed in the atmosphere, and monitor daily global weather. These studies are identifying deposits of minerals that may have formed in water over long periods of time, looking for evidence of shorelines of ancient seas and lakes, and analyzing deposits placed in layers over time by flowing water. The mission is examining whether underground Martian ice discovered by the Mars Odyssey orbiter is the top layer of a deep ice deposit or a shallow layer in equilibrium with the atmosphere and its seasonal cycle of water vapor.

Looking at Small-Scale Features

In its survey of the red planet, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is increasing tenfold the number of spots surveyed close-up. One of the orbiter's cameras is the largest ever flown on a planetary mission. Though previous cameras on other Mars orbiters could identify objects no smaller than a school bus, this camera can spot something as small as a dinner table. That capability has allowed the orbiter to identify obstacles such as large rocks that could jeopardize the safety of landers and rovers, including the Phoenix mission and Mars Science Laboratory mission. Its imaging spectrometer looks at small-scale areas about five times smaller than a football field, a scale perfect for identifying any hot springs or other small water features.

The orbiter's telecommunications systems provide a crucial service for Martian spacecraft, serving as the first link in a communications bridge back to Earth, an "interplanetary Internet" that can be used by numerous international spacecraft in coming years.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is providing new information in unprecedented detail about the surface, subsurface, and atmosphere of Mars.

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Mars Science Laboratory: Curiosity Rover

Part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, at the time of launch, Curiosity was the largest and most capable rover…

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover seeks signs of ancient life and collects samples of rock and regolith for possible Earth return.

Mars Exploration: Science Goals

The key to understanding the past, present or future potential for life on Mars can be found in NASA’s four…

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun, and the seventh largest. It’s the only planet we know of inhabited…