Picking up Clues from the Discard Pile

08.28.08

As NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander excavates trenches, it also builds piles with most of the material scooped from the holes. The piles, like this one called "Caterpillar," provide researchers some information about the soil.

On Aug. 24, 2008, during the late afternoon of the 88th Martian day after landing, Phoenix's Surface Stereo Imager took separate exposures through red, green and blue filters that have been combined into this approximately true-color image.

This conical pile of soil is about 10 centimeters (4 inches) tall. The sources of material that the robotic arm has dropped onto the Caterpillar pile have included the "Dodo" and ""Upper Cupboard" trenches and, more recently, the deeper "Stone Soup" trench.

Observations of the pile provide information, such as the slope of the cone and the textures of the soil, that helps scientists understand properties of material excavated from the trenches.

For the Stone Soup trench in particular, which is about 18 centimeters (7 inches) deep, the bottom of the trench is in shadow and more difficult to observe than other trenches that Phoenix has dug. The Phoenix team obtained spectral clues about the composition of material from the bottom of Stone Soup by photographing Caterpillar through 15 different filters of the Surface Stereo Imager when the pile was covered in freshly excavated material from the trench.

The spectral observation did not produce any sign of water-ice, just typical soil for the site. However, the bigger clumps do show a platy texture that could be consistent with elevated concentration of salts in the soil from deep in Stone Soup. The team chose that location as the source for a soil sample to be analyzed in the lander's wet chemistry laboratory, which can identify soluble salts in the soil.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Many thanks for the contious updates Waspie...this is good stuff.

NASA Phoenix Mission Conducting Extended Activities on Mars
TUCSON, Ariz. -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, having completed its 90-day primary mission, is continuing its science collection activities. Science and engineering teams are looking forward to at least another month of Martian exploration.

Due to the spacecraft's sufficient power and experiment capacity, NASA announced on July 31 that the mission would continue operations through Sept. 30. Once the lander finishes collecting science data, the mission teams will continue the analysis of the measurements and observations.


As NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander excavates trenches,
it also builds piles with most of the material scooped
from the holes. The piles, like this one called
"Caterpillar," provide researchers some information
about the soil.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

"We have been successful beyond my wildest dreams, and we're not done yet learning from Mars about its secrets," said Peter Smith, Phoenix principal investigator from the University of Arizona, Tucson.

"We are still working to understand the properties and the history of the ice at our landing site on the northern plains of Mars. While the sun has begun to dip below the horizon, we still have power to continue our observations and experiments. And we're hoping to see a gradual change in the Martian weather in the next few weeks," he said.

Among the critical questions the Phoenix science team is trying to answer is whether the northern region of Mars could have been a habitable zone.

Phoenix has already confirmed the presence of water ice, determined the soil is alkaline and identified magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride and perchlorate in the soil. Chemical analyses continue even as Phoenix's robotic arm reaches out for more samples to sniff and taste.

"It's been gratifying to be able to share the excitement of our exploration with the public through the thousands upon thousands of images that our cameras have taken. They have been available to the public on our web site as soon as they are received on Earth," Smith said. Phoenix's Surface Stereo Imager, Robotic Arm Camera and microscope have returned more than 20,000 pictures since landing day, May 25.

The mission's meteorological instruments have made daily atmospheric readings and have watched as the pressure decreases, signaling a change in the season. At least one ice water cloud has been observed and consistent wind patterns have been recorded over the landing site.

The team is currently working to diagnose an intermittent interference that has become apparent in the path for gases generated by heating a soil sample in the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer to reach the instrument's mass spectrometer. Vapors from all samples baked to high temperatures have reached the mass spectrometer so far, however data has shown that the gas flow has been erratic, which is puzzling the scientists.

Meanwhile, plans call for Phoenix to widen its deepest trench, called "Stone Soup," to scoop a fresh sample of soil from that depth for analysis in the wet chemistry laboratory of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA). Stone Soup measures about 18 centimeters (7 inches) deep. The first attempt to collect a sample from Stone Soup, on Aug. 26, got 2 to 3 cubic centimeters (half a teaspoon) into the scoop. This was judged to be not quite enough, so delivering a sample was deferred.

In coming days the team also plans to have Phoenix test a revised method for handling a sample rich in water-ice. Two such samples earlier stuck inside the scoop.
The Phoenix mission is led by Peter Smith from the University of Arizona with project management at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin, Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena manages JPL for NASA.

The latest Phoenix images and information are at http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

2008-167

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Thanks againg Waspie for all the forwards your provideing. To be alive in this time of mans baby steps to the stars is truely a gift.To think in the next two or three decades the wonders of exploration and descovery`s in front of us. All that Sic-Fi I grew up with is becomeing Facts. Now we need to not screw it all up by blowing our selfs off this Rock,Im a betting man and I think we can make it.Good work Keep-em-comeing.justDONTEATUS

Ditto, D.


What a phenomenal piece of work Phoenix has been...



We were discussing our money's worth?


Phonix is a classic example of this idea in action...

Analysis Begins on Deepest Soil Sample
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Scientists have begun to analyze a sample of soil delivered to NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's wet chemistry experiment from the deepest trench dug so far in the Martian arctic plains.

Phoenix has also been observing movement of clouds overhead.


Clouds scoot across the Martian sky in a movie
clip consisting of 10 frames taken by the Surface
Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

The lander's robotic arm on Sunday sprinkled a small fraction of the estimated 50 cubic centimeters of soil that had been scooped up from the informally named "Stone Soup" trench on Saturday, the 95th day of the mission. The Stone Soup trench, in the left portion of the lander's active workspace, is approximately 18 centimeters (7 inches) deep.

"This is pretty exciting stuff and we are anxious to find out what makes this deeper soil cloddier than the other samples," said Doug Ming, a Phoenix science team member from NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston.

The surface of the vast arctic plain where Phoenix landed on May 25 bears a pattern of polygon-shaped small hummocks, similar to some permafrost terrain on Earth. Scientists are particularly interested in the new sample because it is the first delivered to an analytical instrument from a trench on the margin between two of the polygons, where different material may collect than what has been analyzed from near the center of a polygon. Seen inside Phoenix's scoop Sunday, the sample material from the bottom of the trench displayed clumping characteristics somewhat different from other cloddy soil samples that have been collected and examined.

A series of images of fresh soil dug and discarded from Stone Soup trench have given some clues to the composition of the sample. While spectral observations have not produced any sign of water-ice, bigger clumps of soil have shown a texture that could be consistent with elevated concentration of salts in the soil from deep in the trench. The lander's wet chemistry laboratory can identify soluble salts in the soil.

The science team has also been studying a movie created from still pictures of the nearby Martian sky showing dramatic water ice clouds moving over the landing site during a 10-minute period on Sol 94 (Aug. 29).

"The images were taken as part of a campaign to see clouds and track wind. These are clearly ice clouds," said Mark Lemmon, the lead scientist for the lander's surface stereo imager, from Texas A&M University.

The Phoenix mission is led by Peter Smith from the University of Arizona with project management at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin, Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena manages JPL for NASA.

The latest Phoenix images and information are at http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

2008-169

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Ice Clouds in Martian Arctic (Accelerated Movie)

08.28.08

Clouds scoot across the Martian sky in a movie clip consisting of 10 frames taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander.

This clip accelerates the motion. The camera took these 10 frames over a 10-minute period from 2:52 p.m. to 3:02 p.m. local solar time at the Phoenix site during Sol 94 (Aug. 29), the 94th Martian day since landing.

Particles of water-ice make up these clouds, like ice-crystal cirrus clouds on Earth. Ice hazes have been common at the Phoenix site in recent days.

The camera took these images as part of a campaign by the Phoenix team to see clouds and track winds. The view is toward slightly west of due south, so the clouds are moving westward or west-northwestward.

The clouds are a dramatic visualization of the Martian water cycle. The water vapor comes off the north pole during the peak of summer. The northern-Mars summer has just passed its peak water-vapor abundance at the Phoenix site. The atmospheric water is available to form into clouds, fog and frost, such as the lander has been observing recently.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Deepest Trenching at Phoenix Site on Mars

09.01.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander widened the deepest trench it has excavated, dubbed "Stone Soup," (in the lower half of this image) to collect a sample from about 18 centimeters (7 inches) below the surface for analysis by the lander's wet chemistry laboratory.

Phoenix's Surface Stereo Imager took this image on Sol 95 (Aug. 30, 2008), the 95th Martian day since landing. For scale, the rock to the right of the Stone Soup trench is about 15 centimeters (6 inches) across. The lander's robotic arm scooped up a sample from the left half of the trench for delivery the following sol to the wet chemistry laboratory.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Spiky Probe on NASA Mars Lander Raises Vapor Quandary
TUCSON, Ariz. -- A fork-like conductivity probe has sensed humidity rising and falling beside NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, but when stuck into the ground, its measurements so far indicate soil that is thoroughly and perplexingly dry.

"If you have water vapor in the air, every surface exposed to that air will have water molecules adhere to it that are somewhat mobile, even at temperatures well below freezing," said Aaron Zent of NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., lead scientist for Phoenix's thermal and electroconductivity probe.


Phoenix inserted the four needles of its thermal
and conductivity probe into Martian soil during
the 98th Martian day, or sol, of the mission and
left it in place until Sol 99 (Sept. 4, 2008).
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

In below-freezing permafrost terrains on Earth, that thin layer of unfrozen water molecules on soil particles can grow thick enough to support microbial life. One goal for building the conductivity probe and sending it to Mars has been to see whether the permafrost terrain of the Martian arctic has detectable thin films of unfrozen water on soil particles. By gauging how electricity moves through the soil from one prong to another, the probe can detect films of water barely more than one molecule thick.

"Phoenix has other tools to find clues about whether water ice at the site has melted in the past, such as identifying minerals in the soil and observing soil particles with microscopes. The conductivity probe is our main tool for checking for present-day soil moisture," said Phoenix Project Scientist Leslie Tamppari of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

Preliminary results from the latest insertion of the probe's four needles into the ground, on Wednesday and Thursday, match results from the three similar insertions in the three months since landing.

"All the measurements we've made so far are consistent with extremely dry soil," Zent said. "There are no indications of thin films of moisture, and this is puzzling."

Three other sets of observations by Phoenix, in addition to the terrestrial permafrost analogy, give reasons for expecting to find thin-film moisture in the soil.

One is the conductivity probe's own measurements of relative humidity when the probe is held up in the air. "The relative humidity transitions from near zero to near 100 percent with every day-night cycle, which suggests there's a lot of moisture moving in and out of the soil," Zent said.

Another is Phoenix's confirmation of a hard layer containing water-ice about 5 centimeters (2 inches) or so beneath the surface.

Also, handling the site's soil with the scoop on Phoenix's robotic arm and observing the disturbed soil show that it has clumping cohesiveness when first scooped up and that this cohesiveness decreases after the scooped soil sits exposed to air for a day or two. One possible explanation for those observations could be thin-film moisture in the ground.

The Phoenix team is laying plans for a variation on the experiment of inserting the conductivity probe into the soil. The four successful insertions so far have all been into an undisturbed soil surface. The planned variation is to scoop away some soil first, so the inserted needles will reach closer to the subsurface ice layer.

"There should be some amount of unfrozen water attached to the surface of soil particles above the ice," Zent said. "It may be too little to detect, but we haven't inished looking yet."

The thermal and electroconductivity probe, built by Decagon Devices Inc., Pullman, Wash., is mounted on Phoenix's robotic arm. The probe is part of the lander's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity instrument suite.

The Phoenix mission is led by Peter Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

2008-171

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Phoenix Conductivity Probe Inserted into Martian Soil

09.04.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander inserted the four needles of its thermal and conductivity probe into Martian soil during the 98th Martian day, or sol, of the mission and left it in place until Sol 99 (Sept. 4, 2008).

The Robotic Arm Camera on Phoenix took this image on the morning of Sol 99 while the probe's needles were in the ground. The science team informally named this soil target "Gandalf."

The thermal and conductivity probe measures how fast heat and electricity move from one needle to an adjacent one through the soil or air between the needles. Conductivity readings can be indicators about water vapor, water ice and liquid water.

The probe is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity suite of instruments.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Max Planck Institute

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Phoenix Conductivity Probe with Shadow and Toothmark

09.04.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander inserted the four needles of its thermal and conductivity probe into Martian soil during the 98th Martian day, or sol, of the mission and left it in place until Sol 99 (Sept. 4, 2008).

The Robotic Arm Camera on Phoenix took this image on the morning of Sol 99 after the probe was lifted away from the soil. The imprint left by the insertion is visible below the probe, and a shadow showing the probe's four needles is cast on a rock to the left.

The thermal and conductivity probe measures how fast heat and electricity move from one needle to an adjacent one through the soil or air between the needles. Conductivity readings can be indicators about water vapor, water ice and liquid water.

The probe is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity suite of instruments.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Max Planck Institute

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Phoenix Conductivity Probe after Extraction from Martian Soil on Sol 99

09.04.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander inserted the four needles of its thermal and conductivity probe into Martian soil during the 98th Martian day, or sol, of the mission and left it in place until Sol 99 (Sept. 4, 2008).

The Surface Stereo Imager on Phoenix took this image on the morning of Sol 99 after the probe was lifted away from the soil. This imaging served as a check of whether soil had stuck to the needles.

The thermal and conductivity probe measures how fast heat and electricity move from one needle to an adjacent one through the soil or air between the needles. Conductivity readings can be indicators about water vapor, water ice and liquid water.

The probe is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity suite of instruments.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

So it must be still inconclusive that water ,even ice water is being hard to prove? I love the video of the ice clouds .

Underneath Phoenix Lander 97 Sols After Touchdown

09.08.08

The Robotic Arm Camera on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander took this image on Sept. 1, 2008, at about 4 a.m. local solar time during the 97th Martian day, or sol, since landing. The view underneath the lander shows growth of the clumps adhering to leg strut (upper left) compared with what was present when a similar image was taken about three months earlier (see http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA10759).

The view in this Sol 97 image is southward. Illumination is from the early morning sun above the northeastern horizon. This is quite different from the illumination in the Sol 8 image, which was taken in mid-afternoon.

The science team has discussed various possible explanations for these clumps. One suggestion is that they may have started from a splash of mud if Phoenix's descent engines melted icy soil during the landing. Another is that specks of salt may have landed on the strut and began attracting atmospheric moisture that freezes and accumulates. The clumps are concentrated on the north side of the strut, usually in the shade, so their accumulation could be a consequence of the fact that condensation favors colder surfaces.

In this image, compared with the one from three months earlier, the flat, smooth patches of ice exposed underneath the lander seem to be partly covered by darker material left behind as ice vaporizes away. The flat patch in the center of the image has the informal name "Holy Cow," based on researchers' reaction when they saw the initial image of it.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech//University of Arizona/Max Planck Institute

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Next Mars Soil Scoop Slated for Last of Lander's Wet Lab Cells
TUCSON, Ariz. -- The next soil sample that NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander will deliver to its deck instruments will go to the fourth of the four cells of Phoenix's wet chemistry laboratory, according to the Phoenix team's current plans.

The chosen source for that sample is from the "Snow White" trench on the eastern end of the work area reachable with Phoenix's robotic arm. In July that trench yielded a sample in which another analytical instrument, the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer (or TEGA), confirmed the presence of water ice. One of the three cells previously used on the wet chemistry laboratory also analyzed a sample from Snow White.


The informally named "Snow White" trench is
the source for the next sample to be acquired by
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander for analysis by the
wet chemistry lab.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

The wet chemistry laboratory mixes Martian soil with purified water brought from Earth as part of its process for identifying soluble nutrients and other chemicals in the soil. Scientists have used it to determine that the soil beside the lander is alkaline and to identify magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride and perchlorate in the soil.

The Phoenix team plans to fill the last four of eight single-use ovens on the TEGA instrument without waiting for the analysis of each sample to be completed before delivering the next. The strategy is to get as many samples as possible delivered while there is still enough energy available for digging. The northern Martian summer is nearly half over. The amount of sunshine reaching Phoenix's solar panels, and consequently the amount of electricity produced by the panels, is declining.

"Now that the sun is not constantly above the horizon at our landing site we are generating less power every sol," said Phoenix Project Manager Barry Goldstein of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "When we landed in late May, and through much of our mission, we generated about 3,500 watt-hours every sol. We are currently at about 2,500 watt-hours, and sinking daily. With the remaining sols we need to scurry to squeeze the last bit of science out of the mission."

One hundred watt-hours is equivalent to what is needed to illuminate a 100-watt bulb for one hour.

As TEGA bakes samples, it identifies the temperatures at which volatile ingredients in the soil are vaporized. It also has a mass spectrometer to identify the vapors. A valve that controls the flow of a carrier gas for transporting the vapors to the mass spectrometer is no longer reliable, but researchers anticipate that the remaining samples will yield enough vaporized water and carbon dioxide to carry any scarcer vapors to the spectrometer. The team is also examining possible operational workarounds for unanticipated opening of a valve controlling flow of calibration gas.

The Snow White trench is the chosen source for the next sample to go into a TEGA oven, as well as the next sample for the wet chemistry laboratory. For the TEGA sample, the team plans to use a rasp on the robotic arm to churn up ice-rich material from the hard floor of the trench. Ice-rich samples stuck inside the scoop during two attempts in July to deliver them to a TEGA oven. However, a test run on Aug. 30 verified that an ice-rich sample can be delivered using methods that minimize the time the sample is in the scoop and the exposure of the scoop to direct sunlight.

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Snow White Trench Prepared for Sample Collection

09.09.08

The informally named "Snow White" trench is the source for the next sample to be acquired by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander for analysis by the wet chemistry lab.

The Surface Stereo Imager on Phoenix took this shadow-enhanced image of the trench, on the eastern end of Phoenix's work area, on Sol 103, or the 103rd day of the mission, Sept. 8, 2008. The trench is about 23 centimeters (9 inches) wide.

The wet chemistry lab is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity suite of instruments.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

NASA's Phoenix Lander Sees, Feels Martian Whirlwinds in Action
TUCSON, Ariz. -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has photographed several dust devils dancing across the arctic plain this week and sensed a dip in air pressure as one passed near the lander.

These dust-lofting whirlwinds had been expected in the area, but none had been detected in earlier Phoenix images.


Phoenix caught this dust devil in action west of
the lander in four frames shot about 50 seconds
apart from each other on Sol 104, or the 104th
Martian day of the mission, Sept. 9, 2008.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

The Surface Stereo Imager camera on Phoenix took 29 images of the western and southwestern horizon on Sept. 8, during mid-day hours of the lander's 104th Martian day. The next day, after the images had been transmitted to Earth, the Phoenix science team noticed a dust devil right away.

"It was a surprise to have a dust devil so visible that it stood with just the normal processing we do," said Mark Lemmon of Texas A&M University, College Station, lead scientist for the stereo camera. "Once we saw a couple that way, we did some additional processing and found there are dust devils in 12 of the images."

At least six different dust devils appear in the images, some of them in more than one image. They range in diameter from about 2 meters (7 feet) to about 5 meters (16 feet).

"It will be very interesting to watch over the next days and weeks to see if there are lots of dust devils or if this was an isolated event," Lemmon said.

The Phoenix team is not worried about any damage to the spacecraft from these swirling winds. "With the thin atmosphere on Mars, the wind loads we might experience from dust devil winds are well within the design of the vehicle," said Ed Sedivy, Phoenix program manager at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, Denver, which made the spacecraft. "The lander is very rigid with the exception of the solar arrays, which once deployed, latched into position and became a tension structure."

Phoenix monitors air pressure every day, and on the same day the camera saw dust devils, the pressure meter recorded a sharper dip than ever before. The change was still less than the daily change in air pressure from daytime to nighttime, but over a much shorter time.

"Throughout the mission, we have been detecting vortex structures that lower the pressure for 20 to 30 seconds during the middle part of the day," said Peter Taylor of York University, Toronto, Canada, a member of the Phoenix science team. "In the last few weeks, we've seen the intensity increasing, and now these vortices appear to have become strong enough to pick up dust."

A key factor in the whirlwinds getting stronger is an increase in the difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures. Daytime highs at the Phoenix site are still about minus 30 Celsius (minus 22 Fahrenheit), but nighttime lows have been dropping a few degrees, getting close to minus 90 Celsius (minus 130 Fahrenheit).

The same day as the dust devils were seen, the photographed swinging of Phoenix's telltale wind gauge indicated wind speeds exceeding 5 meters per second (11 miles per hour).

Images from spacecraft orbiting Mars had previously indicated that dust devils exist in the region where Phoenix landed.

"We expected dust devils, but we are not sure how frequently," said Phoenix Project Scientist Leslie Tamppari of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "It could be they are rare and Phoenix got lucky. We'll keep looking for dust devils at the Phoenix site to see if they are common or not."

The dust devils that Phoenix has observed so far are much smaller than dust devils that NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has photographed much closer to the equator.

The Phoenix mission is led by Peter Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Martian Arctic Dust Devil and Phoenix Meteorology Mast

09.11.08

The Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander caught this dust devil in action west-southwest of the lander at 11:16 a.m. local Mars time on Sol 104, or the 104th Martian day of the mission, Sept. 9, 2008.

Dust devils have not been detected in any Phoenix images from earlier in the mission, but at least six were observed in a dozen images taken on Sol 104.

Dust devils are whirlwinds that often occur when the Sun heats the surface of Mars, or some areas on Earth. The warmed surface heats the layer of atmosphere closest to it, and the warm air rises in a whirling motion, stirring dust up from the surface like a miniature tornado.

The vertical post near the left edge of this image is the mast of the Meteorological Station on Phoenix. The dust devil visible at the horizon just to the right of the mast is estimated to be 600 to 700 meters (about 2,000 to 2,300 feet) from Phoenix, and 4 to 5 meters (10 to 13 feet) in diameter. It is much smaller than dust devils that have been observed by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit much closer to the equator. It is closer in size to dust devils seen from orbit in the Phoenix landing region, though still smaller than those.

The image has been enhanced to make the dust devil easier to see.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Martian Arctic Dust Devil, Phoenix Sol 104

09.11.08

The Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander caught this dust devil in action west of the lander at 11:49 a.m. local Mars time on Sol 104, or the 104th Martian day of the mission, Sept. 9, 2008.

Dust devils have not been detected in any Phoenix images from earlier in the mission, but at least six were observed in a dozen images taken on Sol 104.

Dust devils are whirlwinds that often occur when the Sun heats the surface of Mars, or some areas on Earth. The warmed surface heats the layer of atmosphere closest to it, and the warm air rises in a whirling motion, stirring dust up from the surface like a miniature tornado.

The dust devil visible in the center of this image just below the horizon is estimated to be about 400 meters (about 1,300 feet) from Phoenix, and 4 meters (13 feet) in diameter. It is much smaller than dust devils that have been observed by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit much closer to the equator. It is closer in size to dust devils seen from orbit in the Phoenix landing region, though still smaller than those.

The image has been enhanced to make the dust devil easier to see.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Solar Panel Buffeted by Wind at Phoenix Site

09.11.08

Winds were strong enough to cause about a half a centimeter (.19 inch) of motion of a solar panel on NASA's Phoenix Mars lander when the lander's Surface Stereo Imager took this picture on Aug. 31, 2008, during the 96th Martian day since landing.

The lander's telltale wind gauge has been indicating wind speeds of about 4 meters per second (9 miles per hour) during late mornings at the site.

These conditions were anticipated and the wind is not expected to do any harm to the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Martian Dust Devil Movie, Phoenix Sol 104

09.11.08

The Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander caught this dust devil in action west of the lander in four frames shot about 50 seconds apart from each other between 11:53 a.m. and 11:56 a.m. local Mars time on Sol 104, or the 104th Martian day of the mission, Sept. 9, 2008.

Dust devils have not been detected in any Phoenix images from earlier in the mission, but at least six were observed on Sol 104.

Dust devils are whirlwinds that often occur when the Sun heats the surface of Mars, or some areas on Earth. The warmed surface heats the layer of atmosphere closest to it, and the warm air rises in a whirling motion, stirring dust up from the surface like a miniature tornado.

The dust devil visible in this sequence was about 1,000 meters (about 3,300 feet) from the lander when the first frame was taken, and had moved to about 1,700 meters (about 5,600 feet) away by the time the last frame was taken about two and a half minutes later.

This dust devil is about 5 meters (16 feet) in diameter. This is much smaller than dust devils that have been observed by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit much closer to the equator. It is closer in size to dust devils seen from orbit in the Phoenix landing region, though still smaller than those..

The image has been enhanced to make the dust devil easier to see.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Phoenix Telltale Movie with Clouds, Sol 103

09.11.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's telltale catches a breeze as clouds move over the landing site on Sol 103 (Sept. 7, 2008), the 103rd Martian day since landing.

Phoenix's Surface Stereo Imager took this series of images during daily telltale monitoring around 3 p.m. local solar time and captured the clouds moving over the landing site.

Phoenix can measure wind speed and direction by imaging the telltale, which is about about 10 centimeters (4 inches) tall. The telltale was built by the University of Aarhus, Denmark.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Nighttime Clouds in Martian Arctic (Accelerated Movie)

09.11.08

An angry looking sky is captured in a movie clip consisting of 10 frames taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander.

The clip accelerates the motion. The images were take around 3 a.m. local solar time at the Phoenix site during Sol 95 (Aug. 30), the 95th Martian day since landing.

The swirling clouds may be moving generally in a westward direction over the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

More Soil Delivered to Phoenix Lab

09.16.08

This image, taken by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Surface Stereo Imager, documents the delivery of a soil sample from the "Snow White" trench to the Wet Chemistry Laboratory. A small pile of soil is visible on the lower edge of the second cell from the top.This deck-mounted lab is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA).

The delivery was made on Sept. 12, 2008, which was Sol 107 (the 107th Martian day) of the mission, which landed on May 25, 2008.

The Wet Chemistry Laboratory mixes Martian soil with an aqueous solution from Earth as part of a process to identify soluble nutrients and other chemicals in the soil. Preliminary analysis of this soil confirms that it is alkaline, and composed of salts and other chemicals such as perchlorate, sodium, magnesium, chloride and potassium. This data validates prior results from that same location, said JPL's Michael Hecht, the lead scientist for MECA.

In the coming days, the Phoenix team will also fill the final four of eight single-use ovens on another soil-analysis instrument, the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer, or TEGA. The team's strategy is to deliver as many samples as possible before the power produced by Phoenix's solar panels declines due to the end of the Martian summer.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Crumpled Heat Shield

09.17.08

The Phoenix Mars Lander's Surface Stereo Imager took this image of the spacecraft's crumpled heat shield on Sept. 16, 2008, the 111th Martian day of the mission.

The 2-1/2 meter (about 8-1/2 feet) heat shield landed southeast of Phoenix, about halfway between the spacecraft and its backshell/parachute. The backshell/parachute touched ground 300 meters (1,000 ft) to the south of the lander.

The dark area to the right of the heat shield is the "bounce mark" it made on impact with the Red Planet. This image is the highest-resolution image that will likely be taken by the lander, and is part of the 1,500-image "Happily Ever After" panorama.

The Phoenix mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/ Texas A&M Univeristy

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Morning Frost in Trench Dug by Phoenix, Sol 113 (False Color)

09.19.08

This image from the Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander shows morning frost inside the "Snow White" trench dug by the lander, in addition to subsurface ice exposed by use of a rasp on the floor of the trench.

The camera took this image at about 9 a.m. local solar time during the 113th Martian day of the mission (Sept. 18, 2008). Bright material near and below the four-by-four set of rasp holes in the upper half of the image is water-ice exposed by rasping and scraping in the trench earlier the same morning. Other bright material, especially around the edges of the trench, is frost. Earlier in the mission, when the sun stayed above the horizon all night, morning frost was not evident in the trench.

This image is presented in false color that enhances the visibility of the frost.

The trench is 4 to 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) deep, about 23 centimeters (9 inches) wide.

Phoenix landed on a Martian arctic plain on May 25, 2008. The mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/ Texas A&M Univeristy

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Morning Frost in Trench Dug by Phoenix, Sol 113

09.19.08

This image from the Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander shows morning frost inside the "Snow White" trench dug by the lander, in addition to subsurface ice exposed by use of a rasp on the floor of the trench.

The camera took this image at about 9 a.m. local solar time during the 113th Martian day of the mission (Sept. 18, 2008). Bright material near and below the four-by-four set of rasp holes in the upper half of the image is water-ice exposed by rasping and scraping in the trench earlier the same morning. Other bright material especially around the edges of the trench, is frost. Earlier in the mission, when the sun stayed above the horizon all night, morning frost was not evident in the trench.

This image is presented in approximately true color.

The trench is 4 to 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) deep, about 23 centimeters (9 inches) wide.


Phoenix landed on a Martian arctic plain on May 25, 2008. The mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/ Texas A&M Univeristy

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Clouds Move Across Mars Horizon

09.11.08

This sequence combines 32 images of clouds moving eastward across a Martian horizon. The Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander took this set of images on Sept. 18, 2008, during early afternoon hours of the 113th Martian day of the mission.

The view is toward the north. The actual elapsed time between the first image and the last image is nearly half an hour. The numbers inset at lower left are the elapsed time, in seconds, after the first image of the sequence. The particles in the clouds are water-ice, as in cirrus clouds on Earth.

Phoenix landed in the northern region of Mars on May 25, 2008. The mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

NASA's Phoenix Lander Might Peek Under a Rock
TUCSON, Ariz. -- If the robotic arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander can nudge a rock aside today, scientists on the Phoenix team would like to see what's underneath.

Engineers who develop commands for the robotic arm have prepared a plan to try displacing a rock on the north side of the lander. This rock, roughly the size and shape of a VHS videotape, is informally named "Headless."


A rock informally named "Headless," on the north
side of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, has been
selected for an attempt to slide the rock aside with
the lander's robotic arm.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

"We don't know whether we can do this until we try," said A****ey Trebi Ollennu, a robotics engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "The idea is to move the rock with minimum disturbance to the surface beneath it. You have to get under it enough to lift it as you push it and it doesn't just slip off the scoop."

The lander receives commands for the whole day in the morning, so there's no way to adjust in mid-move if the rock starts slipping. Phoenix took stereo-pair images of Headless to provide a detailed three-dimensional map of it for planning the arm's motions. On Saturday, Sept. 20, the arm enlarged a trench close to Headless. Commands sent to Phoenix Sunday evening, Sept. 21, included a sequence of arm motions for today, intended to slide the rock into the trench.

Moving rocks is not among the many tasks Phoenix's robotic arm was designed to do. If the technique works, the move would expose enough area for digging into the soil that had been beneath Headless.

"The appeal of studying what's underneath is so strong we have to give this a try," said Michael Mellon, a Phoenix science team member at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

The scientific motive is related to a hard, icy layer found beneath the surface in trenches that the robotic arm has dug near the lander. Excavating down to that hard layer underneath a rock might provide clues about processes affecting the ice.

"The rocks are darker than the material around them, and they hold heat," Mellon said. "In theory, the ice table should deflect downward under each rock. If we checked and saw this deflection, that would be evidence the ice is probably in equilibrium with the water vapor in the atmosphere."

An alternative possibility, if the icy layer were found closer to the surface under a rock, could be the rock collecting moisture from the atmosphere, with the moisture becoming part of the icy layer.

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix and http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters, Washington
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

2008-177

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

'Headless' Chosen for Attempt to Move a Martian Rock

09.22.08

A rock informally named "Headless," on the north side of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, has been selected for an attempt to slide the rock aside with the lander's robotic arm.

Moving rocks is not among the many tasks the arm was designed to do, but if the maneuver can be accomplished, scientists on the Phoenix team hope to check whether the depth to a subsurface ice layer is any different underneath the area where the rock now sits.

Headless is about 19 centimeters (7 inches) long, 10 centimeters (4 inches) wide, extends 2 to 3 centimetes (about 1 inch) above the surface.

This image, originally posted on Aug. 27, 2008 without the label on Headless, is a mosaic of images taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on Phoenix, showing the workspace reachable with the robotic arm. The camera took the images during the early afternoon of the mission's 90th Martian day, corresponding to overnight Aug. 25 to Aug. 26.

The shadow of the the camera itself, atop its mast, is just left of the center of the image and roughly a third of a meter (one foot) wide.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

is moving the rock really going to achieve anything special? especially after we've already dug deeper than the surface, the only positive i can see coming from moving the rock is if a worm is under it, but thats unlikely. is this the first signs that the phoenix team are running out of things to do?

What a strange question. Of course not.

The whole point of Phoenix is to determine whether the conditions exist on Mars that might support life. The key to this is understanding how and where water can be found on the Martian surface. Phoenix has already shown that water ice exists below the surface. It has also shown that, once exposed, the water ice sublimes. By moving the rock it will be possible to determine of water ice can exist on the surface protected by rock. This will help scientists determine where and how to look for life on future missions.

Mosaic of Commemorative Microscope Substrate

09.23.08

Written by electron beam lithography in the Microdevices Laboratory of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, this Optical Microscope substrate helps the Phoenix Mars Mission science team learn how to assemble individual microscope images into a mosaic by aligning rows of text.

Each line is about 0.1 millimeter tall, the average thickness of a human hair. Except for the Mogensen twins, the names are of babies born and team members lost during the original development of MECA (the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer) for the canceled 2001 Mars lander mission. The plaque also acknowledges the MECA 2001 principal investigator, now retired.

This image was taken by the MECA Optical Microscope on Sol 111, or the 111th day of the Phoenix mission (Sept. 16, 2008).

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Preparation for Moving a Rock on Mars

09.23.08

The robotic arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander enlarged a trench beside a rock called "Headless" during the mission's 115th Martian day (Sept. 20, 2008) in preparation for sliding the rock into the trench. The lander's Surface Stereo Imager took this image later that afternoon, showing the enlarged trench and the rock.

The robotic arm successfully moved the rock two days later.

The Phoenix science team sought to move the rock in order to study the soil and the depth to subsurface ice underneath where the rock had been.

Headless is about the size and shape of a VHS videotape. The trench, called "Neverland," was excavated to about 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) deep near the rock. The ground surface between the rock and the lip of the trench slopes downward about 3 degrees toward the trench.

This image was taken at about 4:35 p.m., local solar time on Mars. The view is to the north northeast of the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by JPL, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Preparation for Moving a Rock on Mars, Stereo View

09.23.08

The robotic arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander enlarged a trench beside a rock called "Headless" during the mission's 115th Martian day (Sept. 20, 2008) in preparation for sliding the rock into the trench. The lander's Surface Stereo Imager took the two images for this stereo view later that afternoon, showing the enlarged trench and the rock.

The robotic arm successfully moved the rock two days later.

The Phoenix science team sought to move the rock in order to study the soil and the depth to subsurface ice underneath where the rock had been.

Headless is about the size and shape of a VHS videotape. The trench, called "Neverland," was excavated to about 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) deep near the rock. The ground surface between the rock and the lip of the trench slopes downward about 3 degrees toward the trench.

The left-eye and right-eye images combined into this stereo view were taken at about 4:35 p.m., local solar time on Mars. The scene appears three-dimensional when seen through blue-red glasses. The view is to the north northeast of the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by JPL, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Rock Moved by Mars Lander Arm

09.23.08

The robotic arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander slid a rock out of the way during the mission's 117th Martian day (Sept. 22, 2008) to gain access to soil that had been underneath the rock.The lander's Surface Stereo Imager took this image later the same day, showing the rock, called "Headless," after the arm pushed it about 40 centimeters (16 inches) from its previous location.

"The rock ended up exactly where we intended it to," said Matt Robinson of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, robotic arm flight software lead for the Phoenix team.

The arm had enlarged the trench near Headless two days earlier in preparation for sliding the rock into the trench. The trench was dug to about 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) deep. The ground surface between the rock's prior position and the lip of the trench had a slope of about 3 degrees downward toward the trench. Headless is about the size and shape of a VHS videotape.

The Phoenix science team sought to move the rock in order to study the soil and the depth to subsurface ice underneath where the rock had been.

This image was taken at about 12:30 p.m., local solar time on Mars. The view is to the north northeast of the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by JPL, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Preparation for Moving a Rock on Mars, Stereo View

09.23.08

The robotic arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander enlarged a trench beside a rock called "Headless" during the mission's 115th Martian day (Sept. 20, 2008) in preparation for sliding the rock into the trench. The lander's Surface Stereo Imager took the two images for this stereo view later that afternoon, showing the enlarged trench and the rock.

The robotic arm successfully moved the rock two days later.

The Phoenix science team sought to move the rock in order to study the soil and the depth to subsurface ice underneath where the rock had been.

Headless is about the size and shape of a VHS videotape. The trench, called "Neverland," was excavated to about 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) deep near the rock. The ground surface between the rock and the lip of the trench slopes downward about 3 degrees toward the trench.

The left-eye and right-eye images combined into this stereo view were taken at about 4:35 p.m., local solar time on Mars. The scene appears three-dimensional when seen through blue-red glasses. The view is to the north northeast of the lander.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by JPL, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

NASA Mars Lander Sees Falling Snow, Soil Data Suggest Liquid Past
PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling from Martian clouds. Spacecraft soil experiments also have provided evidence of past interaction between minerals and liquid water, processes that occur on Earth.


This sequence of nine images taken by NASA's
Phoenix Mars Lander shows the sun rising on
the morning of the lander's 101st Martian day
after landing.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of
Arizona/Texas A&M University.

A laser instrument designed to gather knowledge of how the atmosphere and surface interact on Mars has detected snow from clouds about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) above the spacecraft's landing site. Data show the snow vaporizing before reaching the ground.

"Nothing like this view has ever been seen on Mars," said Jim Whiteway, of York University, Toronto, lead scientist for the Canadian-supplied Meteorological Station on Phoenix. "We'll be looking for signs that the snow may even reach the ground."

Phoenix experiments also yielded clues pointing to calcium carbonate, the main composition of chalk, and particles that could be clay. Most carbonates and clays on Earth form only in the presence of liquid water.

"We are still collecting data and have lots of analysis ahead, but we are making good progress on the big questions we set out for ourselves," said Phoenix Principal Investigator Peter Smith of the University of Arizona, Tucson.

Since landing on May 25, Phoenix already has confirmed that a hard subsurface layer at its far-northern site contains water-ice. Determining whether that ice ever thaws would help answer whether the environment there has been favorable for life, a key aim of the mission.

The evidence for calcium carbonate in soil samples from trenches dug by the Phoenix robotic arm comes from two laboratory instruments called the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer, or TEGA, and the wet chemistry laboratory of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA.

"We have found carbonate," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for the TEGA. "This points toward episodes of interaction with water in the past."

The TEGA evidence for calcium carbonate came from a high-temperature release of carbon dioxide from soil samples. The temperature of the release matches a temperature known to decompose calcium carbonate and release carbon dioxide gas, which was identified by the instrument's mass spectrometer.

The MECA evidence came from a buffering effect characteristic of calcium carbonate assessed in wet chemistry analysis of the soil. The measured concentration of calcium was exactly what would be expected for a solution buffered by calcium carbonate.

Both TEGA, and the microscopy part of MECA, have turned up hints of a clay-like substance. "We are seeing smooth-surfaced, platy particles with the atomic-force microscope, not inconsistent with the appearance of clay particles," said Michael Hecht, MECA lead scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

The Phoenix mission, originally planned for three months on Mars, now is in its fifth month. However, it faces a decline in solar energy that is expected to curtail and then end the lander's activities before the end of the year. Before power ceases, the Phoenix team will attempt to activate a microphone on the lander to possibly capture sounds on Mars.

"For nearly three months after landing, the sun never went below the horizon at our landing site," said Barry Goldstein, JPL Phoenix project manager. "Now it is gone for more than four hours each night, and the output from our solar panels is dropping each week. Before the end of October, there won't be enough energy to keep using the robotic arm."

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona. Project management is the responsibility of JPL with development partnership by Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark; Max Planck Institute, Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix.

Media contacts: Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters, Washington
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

Sara Hammond 520-626-1974
University of Arizona, Tucson
shammond@lpl.arizona.edu

2008-183

Source: NASA - Phoenix - News

Brilliant news, snow hey!. would be great if they actually caught snow falling to the ground. But lets hope they can get that microphone working so we can hear the sounds of Mars. its been a great little mission has phoenix.

Waspie whats the chance that Phoenix would be able to recover and send data after the winter? I know its all about money but wouldnt someone at JPL at least try to see if it was working in a few months? ThanksjustDONTEATUS

And here is another good question for you Waspie..

In respect to the sounds of Mars with the mic, I wonder what we would smell if we could breath the atmosphere of Mars. Just curious....

I have no doubt that JPL will try to recover Phoenix but it is highly unlikely it will survive. The Martian Arctic winter, like that of Earth, has months with no sunshine at all. With no power Phoenix will almost certainly freeze to death.


Not a clue. Very little I suspect. Those things which provide the most noticeable scents to us humans are things like flowers and grass, in short the living things which are absent on Mars. We tend not to be able to smell soil very well.

Phoenix Landing Site Indicated on Global View

09.29.08

NASA's Phoenix Mars Mission landed at 68.2 degrees north latitude, 234.2 degrees east longitude. The far-northern location of the site is indicated on this global view from the Mars Orbiter Camera on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by JPL, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development was by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/MSSS

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Microscope Image of a Martian Soil Surface Sample

09.29.08

This is the closest view of the material underneath NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander. This sample was taken from the top centimeter of the Martian soil, and this image from the lander's Optical Microscope demonstrates its overall composition.

The soil is mostly composed of fine orange particles, and also contains larger grains, about a tenth of a millimeter in diameter, and of various colors. The soil is sticky, keeping together as a slab of material on the supporting substrate even though the substrate is tilted to the vertical.

The fine orange grains are at or below the resolution of the Optical Microscope. Mixed into the soil is a small amount - about 0.5 percent - of white grains, possibly of a salt. The larger grains range from black to almost transparent in appearance. At the bottom of the image, the shadows of the Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) beams are visible. This image is 1 millimeter x 2 millimeters.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Imperial College London

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Phoenix's Snow White Trench

09.29.08

A soil sample taken from the informally named "Snow White" trench at NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander work site produced minerals that indicate evidence of past interaction between the minerals and liquid water.

This image was taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 103, the 103rd day since landing (Sept. 8, 2008).

The trench is approximately 23 centimeters (9 inches) long.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University Arizona/Texas A&M University

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Microscope Image of Scavenged Particles

09.29.08

This image from NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Optical Microscope shows a strongly magnetic surface which has scavenged particles from within the microscope enclosure before a sample delivery from the lander's Robotic Arm. The particles correspond to the larger grains seen in fine orange material that makes up most of the soil at the Phoenix site. They vary in color, but are of similar size, about one-tenth of a millimeter.

As the microscope's sample wheel moved during operation, these particles also shifted, clearing a thin layer of the finer orange particles that have also been collected. Together with the previous image, this shows that the larger grains are much more magnetic than the fine orange particles with a much larger volume of the grains being collected by the magnet. The image is 2 milimeters across.

It is speculated that the orange material particles are a weathering product from the larger grains, with the weathering process both causing a color change and a loss of magnetism.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Imperial College London

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Martian Particle

09.29.08

This image of Martian soil was taken by the Phoenix Lander's atomic force microscope on Sol 74 of the mission, which began on May 25, 2008. This image of a flat, smooth-surfaced particle is consistent with the appearance of soil from Earth containing the mineral phyllosilicate.
The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univesity of Arizona/University of Neuchatel/Imperial College London.

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Terrestrial Clay under Microscope

09.29.08

A scanning electron microscope captured this image of terresterial soil containing a phyllosilicate mineral from Koua Bocca, Ivory Coast, West Africa. This soil shares some similarities with Martian soil scooped by the Phoenix Lander. This image's field of view is approximately 23 microns wide.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Denver.

Photo courtesy of Michael Velbel (Michigan State University) and William Barker, (University of Wisconsin-Madison). From the image database of the Clay Minerals Society and the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland at http://www.minersoc.org/pages/gallery/claypix/index.html.

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Declining Sunshine for Phoenix Lander

09.29.08

The yellow line on this graphic indicates the number of hours of sunlight each sol, or Martian day, at the Phoenix landing site's far-northern latitude, beginning with the entire Martian day (about 24 hours and 40 minutes) for the first 90 sols, then declining to no sunlight by about sol 300. The blue tick mark indicates that on Sol 124 (Sept. 29, 2008), the sun is above the horizon for about 20 hours.

The brown vertical bar represents the period from Nov. 18 to Dec. 24, 2008, around the "solar conjunction," when the sun is close to the line between Mars and Earth, affecting communications.
The green vertical rectangle represents the period from February to November 2009 when the Phoenix lander is expected to be encased in carbon-dioxide ice.

Image NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Lockheed Martin

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images

Lidar Measurements of Snow Falling from Martian Clouds

09.29.08

The Canadian-built lidar aboard NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander produced this graphic of a profile of a Martian cloud on the 99th sol, or Martian day, of the mission (Sept. 3, 2008). The vertical streaks at the base of the cloud on the right of the image show ice crystals falling from the cloud, similar to snow. The streaks are curved as the winds are faster around 3 kilometers (almost 2 miles) than at higher altitudes. Scientists are able to determine that the snow is water-based and not carbon-dioxide snow, since temperatures on Mars are currently too warm to support the latter.

Image
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Canadian Space Agency

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Source: NASA - Phoenix - Images