Seven months ago we reported on the NASA Mission to Mars!

Mars InSight successfully landed on Mars on Monday after a long journey.

It's the first of several challenges NASA faced as it hurried to deploy solar panels necessary for InSight to power its scientific endeavors as it explores the Red Planet, learning about the interior of Mars and gathering scientific data that can pave the way for astronauts to eventually return to the moon and, one day, land on Mars.

Astronauts have been gathering data and performing experiments aboard the International Space Station in advance of the Red Planet landing, and now NASA has leapt over that with an accomplishment that would have impressed Jules Verne.

Continued exploration and, perhaps, one day, colonization are ahead, but for now, we should be proud to witness an accomplishment that can be shared with the world. On the ISS, scientists have been learning about how gravity affects health, plants and water, among other things. It may seem like a leap too far, but every major discovery seems that way in its initial stages.

Congratulations to NASA and all those involved in their mission. We look forward to the next discovery.