Live coverage: Soyuz crew lands in Kazakhstan

Watch the Jason-3 Mission Science Briefing held at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on January 15, 2016. (Membership required.)

Working around the clock to meet a 12-day launch window in March, European engineers are putting the final touches on a Mars orbiter that could shed light on whether tiny microbes or geologic activity still linger on the barren planet.

A commercial airlock built in partnership by NanoRacks and Boeing will be connected to the International Space Station in 2019, the companies announced Monday, after the proposed project won preliminary approval from NASA managers.