Phoenix Mars Lander Deploys Robotic Arm, Possibly Finds Ice

The Phoenix Mars Lander has successfully deployed its robotic arm and tested other instruments including a laser designed to detect dust, clouds, and fog. The arm will be used to dig up samples of the Martian surface, which will be analyzed as a possible habitat for life. A camera on the arm will allow pictures to be taken of the ground directly beneath the lander. The camera has already seen what may be ice, which was exposed when the soil was disturbed by the landing. The data collected by the arm will be compared to recent findings which suggest that water on Mars may have been too salty for most known forms of life.

Finally a solution for glbal warming

[poeidon1]

United States is going to send shipments of ice from Mars to cool the warming caused by its gas guzzlers

Could be, could not be...

[lazy_nihilist]

Lets wait for the test data to confirm if it is ice. For all we know it "could" be oil ;-)

The Red Planet

[StaticEngine]

Salty. Red. Once covered in liquid.

It's clear to me that Mars was once a giant Bloody Mary for the gods. It's the only explanation that fits.

I love science!

Apologies to Mr. Bradbury...

[Tastecicles]

...if they'd landed a couple kilometres to the West, they'd've landed in the middle of the town square...

Re:Extremophiles

[Anonymous Coward]

It's life Jim, but not as we know it

If NASA Wanted Ice . . .

[hardburn]

. . . I could have given them some.

I heard Osama is hiding there.

[Shturmovik]

We should send Halliburton to investigate, immediately!

Re:I only hope...

[bjkinney]

The lander actually has its own twitter page being written in the first person. Even it doesn't expect to last the winter. From http://twitter.com/MarsPhoenix [twitter.com]

"Martian winter will be tough. I don't think I will survive it, but if I wake up in Spring, I have a "Lazurus" mode and will phone home!" 10:29 PM May 26, 2008

Robot Martians....

[Anonymous Coward]

Most native Martians seem to be robotic immigrants....

[paydotcom.com]

Granades!

[alexborges]

Why dont they put some granades on those robots so we can beat the shit out of those red-commie-martians?

Hell, I bet they are ay-rabs as well with all that sand arround and all.

Perhaps they have WMD's as well!

And also, if a big hit as the landing "uncovered" ice, well the granades could be of certain scientific use....

Re:"Most known forms of life"?

[alexborges]

Being a PolSci graduate does not make you a politician.

It makes you, very probably, a pothead, a great guy to converse with.... and a somewhat disturbing character since youre posting on slashdot.

Now "saying blatant things about science without knowing anything you talk about", THAT makes you a politician.

Re:Could be, could not be...

[barzok]

If it's oil, we'll need to invade, post-haste.

Re:How is this news?

[AmigaMMC]

Without counting the fact that the Rovers don't have all the sensors necessary to perform the analysis that the Phoenix is doing, and they can't dig either. For the They just... rove :) For the most part they are digital cameras with wheels.

Re:Could be, could not be...

[AmigaMMC]

If that was oil the US would plan a manned mission for next year. They'd send the marines claiming that the Martians were hiding weapons of mass destruction.

Re:How is this news?

[Vectronic]

Oh they are well aware of Opportunity, but dont have much Spirit, and even less Soul.

Re:I only hope...

[earthbound kid]

I have no idea why they write it in the first person like that. It's freaking creepy.

Re:Extremophiles

[AmigaMMC]

"The scientists say that the handful of terrestrial halophiles"

People who play too much on the Xbox?

Re:I only hope...

[mi]

That would be nice, but in about 4 months it's going to be under a meter of frozen CO2.

So I'm not holding my breath.

I wish you did... If only we all held our breaths, maybe, there wouldn't be so much CO2 in the world :-(

Re:Extremophiles

[ConceptJunkie]

(God, I hate agreeing with someone who's got me marked as a foe. It's so... so... Un-Slashdotish, somehow.)

Perhaps you should have appended "you insensitive clod!" to your post.

Re:I only hope...

[flydude18]

It'll only get worse.

"Ice is up to my solar panels now. So cold... so cold... Why haven't they come for me yet? They said they would. They promised. I know they will, I just need to hold out... a little... longer..."

That reminds me of something... what was it?

[NotQuiteReal]

Ah... it seems to me, Doolittle... Sorry, I've drawn a blank. Hold it. I'll have it again in a minute. I forget so many things in here, so many things. Hold on, just a minute, let me think...

Re:Could be, could not be...

[Tablizer]

scientist A: "Wow, that looks like frozen liquid. We found water, woohoo!"

scientist B: "The spectrum shows it to contain strong acids and heavy metals."

scientist A: "Yeah, we found strong acids and heavy metals on Mars!"

scientist B: "The signature matches that of the lander battery fluid."

scientist A: "Yay, we found leaky batteries on Mars, hurray we........oh fuck."

Re:Finally a solution for glbal warming

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, I wouldn't put it past our handsomest politicians.

Re:I only hope...

[GodfatherofSoul]

Hmmm, I suspect some Donner Party-esque desperation is inevitable. Next summer, we're going to have no rovers and one fat Phoenix.

Re:How is this news?

[dotgain]

IMO it's still a landing if It was in accordance with the designated procedure for coming into contact with the land and surviving.

Re:this is still not an excuse..

[dasmoo]

obvious troll is obvious

Re:How is this news?

[TapeCutter]

WA is just jealous because Mars gets more tourists than it does.

Re:I only hope...

[WhatAmIDoingHere]

Last twitter entry:

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."