In the most ambitious mission to date to find life-sustaining minerals on the Red Planet, NASA's Phoenix Mars probe sent back never-before-seen pictures of Mars' north pole Monday, media reported Tuesday.
The pictures from the probe confirmed that the solar arrays needed for the mission's energy supply had unfolded properly, as the craft's batteries would have run out in about 30 hours.
The photos also showed masts for the stereo camera and weather station had swung into vertical position as planned, and showed the spacecraft's footpad planted on the dusty surface as well as polygonal patterns on the ground that looked similar to icy arctic regions on Earth.
This artist's concept depicts NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander a moment before its planned touchdown on the arctic plains of Mars.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)The flat Martian valley floor is expected to have water-rich permafrost within reach of the lander's robotic arm.
"We can see cracks in the troughs that make us think the ice is still modifying the surface," said Peter Smith, a lead scientist on the project. "We see fresh cracks. Cracks can't be old. They would fill in," he said.
"I'm floored. I'm absolutely floored," said Phoenix Project manager Barry Goldstein of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, as he reviewed the dramatic images.
NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander can be seen parachuting down to Mars, in this image captured from Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter May 25, 2008. The small science probe blazed through the salmon-colored skies of Mars on Sunday, touching down on a frozen desert at the planet's north pole to search for water and assess conditions for sustaining life, NASA officials said. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Source:Xinhua/Agencies
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