NASA's Phoenix Finally Fills Oven

JoeRobe writes "Phoenix has successfully filled oven #4 of the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer instrument (TEGA). They have spent several days now vibrating the screen above the oven, trying to get a significant amount of soil sample into it. From the article: '[T]he oven might have filled because of the cumulative effects of all the vibrating, or because of changes in the soil's cohesiveness as it sat for days on the top of the screen.' Either way, this is the first step toward getting some interesting data from this instrument."

Vibrating the screen

[bobwrit]

IT would be great(laughablity wise) if the whole thing tipped over because of them vibrating the screen.

Cookies

[LeoDavinci578]

Who wants cookies?

Re:EZ Bake?

[rkanodia]

Sorry. Under Martian law, bakers and other wizards are forbidden!

Re:Vibrating the screen

[Harmonious Botch]

The martian critter sitting on the screen is probably tired of foreplay by now...

Too much vibration...

[Volante3192]

Great, now all Phoenix is going to say to NASA is TILT!

We're gonna have to fly someone up there to deposit a dollar in quarters into Phoenix now...

Hooray

[Haoie]

We've come along way from the Easy-Bake Oven.

But I still bet the Phoenix can't make smores.

it's no turkey

[nguy]

To their surprise, NASA scientists discovered that, try as they might, roasting a phoenix in an oven never results in well-done meat.

Will it blend?

[kharri1073]

They should have consulted willitblend.com before they sent the craft to mars. I'm sure the people at will it blend would have had no problems getting some martian dirt through a micro screen.

I thought vibrators were for when...

[exp(pi*sqrt(163))]

...you didn't want a bun in the oven.

Re:What were they thinking?

[Sponge Bath]

1 mm diameter particles are tiny.

For the common man who needs a frame of reference: This is the same length as the distance between the solder balls of many BGA IC packages.

Late Breaking News:

[Spy der Mann]

Today the most Illustrious Council of Elders confirmed that the plan to paralize the terrifying invasor from the sinister blue planet was a success.

But first, a word from our sponsors:

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K'breel, speaker for the Council, calmed down the population:

Gentle Citizens, please do not be alarmed. The terrifying metallic creature sent here by the sinister blue planet has been slowed down. We have been reported that the plan to paralyze its feeding organs has been a success, with the creature unable to eat for at least five days.

K'breel said that the creature was only paralized and not destroyed so the Council would have more time to think of an effective plan. The public cheered when they heard speaker K'breel say the following words:

What is important is that the metallic creature does not record any sign of intelligence under our beloved red sky. But do not be afraid, for soon we will elliminate it, making it look like an accident.

When a subversive traitor accused the speaker for the most Illustrious Council that the slowdown was simply a malfunction in the metallic creature's machinery, K'breel ordered to have him imprisoned and executed tonight for High Blasphemy.

Re:What were they thinking?

[maxume]

The common man has long since spent his last dime.

Re:Cookies

[Mr2cents]

Just imagine that in a few days from now, the news headline could be "NASA cooks the first extraterrestial life - tastes like chicken".

Re:invalidate the tests

[antic]

"If they find presence of life..." ...let's cook it!

Re:invalidate the tests

[sveard]

Ever wonder why ice cubes shrink after they've been in a freezer for a really long time?

I know. I also prefer to use deuterium ice.