Mark is based in Houston, where he has written on aerospace for more than 25 years. While at the Houston Chronicle, he was recognized by the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation in 2006 for his professional contributions to the public understanding of America's space program through news reporting. He has written on U. S. space policy as well as NASA's human and space science initiatives.
Mark was recognized by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors and Headliners Foundation as well as the Chronicle in 2004 for news coverage of the shuttle Columbia tragedy and its aftermath.
He is a graduate of the University of Kansas and holds a Master's degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kansas State University.
NASA's next steps toward its Journey to Mars plans could become a challenge without near-term action from Congress on 2017 and near-term budgets that keep pace with inflation.
A study of meteorites on Mars suggests its harsh, cold conditions have been 10 and possibly 10,000 times drier than those on Earth for millions of years, which suggests a low probability of extant life.
