Posted: Thu, May 15 5:33 AM ET (0933 GMT)
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is set to land on the surface of the Red Planet next weekend, project officials said this week. Phoenix will touch down on May 25th in the north polar regions of the planet to begin a three-month mission to study the region. The spacecraft is equipped with a robotic arm to scoop up soil samples, as well as perhaps unearth layers of subsurface ice, to help determine if the area could have once supported primitive life. The spacecraft, based on a planned 2001 Mars lander that was canceled after the loss of Mars Polar Lander in 1999, is in good condition and on course; a planned trajectory correction maneuver earlier this month was skipped because it was not necessary.

Related Links:

•  SPACE.com article
•  Reuters article
•  Orlando Sentinel article
•  BBC article
•  NASA press release

Posted: Thu, Apr 24 5:38 AM ET (0938 GMT)
One of the twin Mars Exploration Rovers is suffering from a problem with its robotic arm that could limit its utility, JPL announced Wednesday. A motor that controls the side-to-side motion in the shoulder joint of the arm on the rover Opportunity stalled earlier this month and is currently being studied by engineers. The motor first experienced occasional problems in late 2005, but the latest problem took placed after much less activity than previous problems, suggesting that the problem is worsening. Engineers believe the problem is electrical rather than mechanical in nature, Even if the motor could no longer operate, project officials said the robotic arm could still be used to perform "some contact science" since motors that control other joints in the arm are still working. Opportunity has been on the surface of Mars since January 2004, long exceeding its 90-day lifetime. The rover is currently just inside the rim of Victoria Crater.

Related Links:

•  AP article
•  NASA/JPL press release

Report: NASA considering putting Mars rover in hibernation
Posted: Tue, Mar 25 7:44 AM ET (1144 GMT)
A budget cut to NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers project could mean that one of the twin rovers could be put in "hibernation" for an...

Martian salt deposits could be clue in search for life
Posted: Sat, Mar 22 9:20 AM ET (1320 GMT)
Salt deposits discovered on the surface of Mars in data from a NASA mission could help scientists identify prime locations to look for evidence of...

Ancient lakebed found on Mars
Posted: Fri, Mar 7 5:26 AM ET (1026 GMT)
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft has taken images of what scientists believe is an ancient lakebed that could have once supported life. Images...