The Phoenix Mars Lander has photographed what scientists believe may be a smooth table of ice just under the spacecraft.
Scientists believe the lander's powerful thrusters likely blew away the surface soil and exposed the ice when the spacecraft landed on May 25. The finding is good news for the mission because it means ice may be close to the surface and easy to reach with the lander's robotic arm.
"This is really a gleeful day for us," said lead scientist Peter Smith of the University of Arizona. Smith had worried that ice could be as much as 30 to 40 centimeters beneath the surface and therefore more difficult to reach. But the recent photo leads scientists to believe ice could be as little as five to 10 centimeters below the surface.
Phoenix is designed to dig into the Martian polar region to analyze the history of water. The nearly 8-foot robotic arm will deliver samples of soil and ice to scientific instruments on board, which will examine them for signs of organic materials, the building blocks of life. Rate this posting:
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This is really exciting. Even though the Phoenix lander isn't looking for life past of present directly, after this missions they'll have a really good idea of whether it is.
there used to be life on mars. no doubt in my mind
men are from mars :D ..
How many times are 'scientists' gonna say 'we just found what appears to be water on mars'.
YAWN!
I can't believe UFO community actually pays attention to this.
It's all a front. period.
Enjoy the movie.
to l2: yeah your right but anyway theyve shown us a real evidence ..
"It's all a front. period."
A front for what exactly?
Are you suggesting they already know?
What do you expect them to say when they are looking for signs of water using remote control vehicles 700 million kms away; so they are circumspect about what they see.
When the evidence is irrefutable then I guess they will say so.
We have the means to travel among the stars already, but that technology is locked away.
Release such technology would mean the end of this Rich/Poor imbalance and the elites, the 300 so families owning 95 some percent of this planet don't want this.
Richard Lalancette: you are 100% right!
Does that mean we all get our own spaceship?
Who's got the Jack Daniels!
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