US Mars orbiter set for blast-off

The US Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (Maven) spacecraft is expected to blast off from Cape Canaveral Air Station in Florida on Monday at 1:28 pm (1928 GMT), NASA announced, according to dpa. The 11-metres-long new probe was developed by NASA to circle the planet Mars and study its atmosphere in a year-long mission. Expected to reach the Martian atmosphere in September 2014, Maven is to help researchers learn why life never developed on Earth's nearest neighbour. NASA currently has the robots Opportunity and Curiosity on the Martian surface, and two satellites around the planet.