Things We Saw Today: What Has MAVEN Discovered on Mars?

NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission) has been studying the upper atmosphere of Mars since September 2014, which means today is its 1,000 Earth day in orbit! To celebrate, NASA released a list of MAVEN’s ten most important discoveries so far. For example, “The Mars atmosphere has been stripped away by the sun and the solar wind over time, changing the climate from a warmer and wetter environment early in history to the cold, dry climate that we see today.” WTF, sun?? Learn even more about how terrifying our solar system is in the full list.

• Is this family’s Fast & Furious card the best Ramadan card ever?
• Would you like to live your most Victorian Gothic life? io9 has shared a job posting from a family in the UK looking for a live-in nanny to mind their children, with one catch – their house is haunted. “Five nannies have left the role in the last year,” reads the job posting, “each citing supernatural incidents as the reason, including strange noises, broken glass and furniture moving.”
• It looks like Deadpool will be palling around with the X-Men again in Deadpool 2. Star Ryan Reynolds posted the below image of the X-Mansion on Twitter:
  

  Dropped by the X-Mansion. Big fucking surprise. No one’s home. pic.twitter.com/svbUMEdKbb

  — Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) June 17, 2017

• The Guardian published a moving interview with two young men whose mother and sister were murdered by their father. They talk in-depth about their tense family life before the murders, the media’s disturbing treatment of the case, and the ways that they hope to heal and honor their mother and sister. Given the link between domestic violence and mass shootings, their story feels particularly relevant.
• The coroner has revealed details of Carrie Fisher’s autopsy, and the contributing factors included sleep apnea and the presence of some drugs in her system. However, her cause of death is listed as “undetermined.” Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, released a statement in response, emphasizing her mother’s mental health advocacy: “My mom battled drug addiction and mental illness her entire life. She ultimately died of it,” said Lourd. “She was purposefully open in all of her work about the social stigmas surrounding these diseases. She talked about the shame that torments people and their families confronted by these diseases. I know my Mom, she’d want her death to encourage people to be open about their struggles. Seek help, fight for government funding for mental health programs. Shame and those social stigmas are the enemies of progress to solutions and ultimately a cure. Love you Momby.” (via The Hollywood Reporter)

(Featured image via NASA/GSFC)

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