Q&A with Michel Denis, ExoMars flight director

Hauling nearly three tons of supplies, hardware and experiments, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket shot into orbit Monday from Cape Canaveral, with a previously-flown Dragon cargo carrier riding a reused first stage booster to kick off a nearly two-day journey to the International Space Station.

NASA’s intrepid Opportunity rover, in its 13th year driving across the deserted landscapes of Mars, tried to climb a 32-degree incline a few weeks ago to reach a piece of terrain scientists think formed billions of years ago in the presence of water.

Imagery captured by a sharp-eyed camera aboard a NASA orbiter shows where Europe’s Schiaparelli lander cratered on Mars last week, exploding into fine bits of shrapnel and debris after after an apparent software problem doomed the mission, officials said Thursday.