Europe shows that it's not just the USA that can wow us with stunning images (and serious science) as the European Space Agency's Mars Express satellite beams back its first full colour close-up of the surface of the red planet. The picture is of Valles Marineris, the Grand Canyon of Mars, a region of the planet thought to have been carved out by flowing water. You can keep track of the latest images from Mars Express by visiting the ESA's image gallery. So right now we have both NASA and ESA exploring Mars, reinforcing the need for a manned mission to Mars to be a collaboration rather than a race.
