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WASHINGTON: The US Mars probe Phoenix was ready to dig its
backhoe-like arm into the Martian arctic soil for samples scientists
hope hold signs of the existence of water and life-supporting
organic minerals, NASA said Thursday.
Two weeks after landing on the Red Planet, the
Phoenix will cut its first hole into the Martian permafrost in the
landmark mission to probe for the conditions supportive of life.
“We are preparing to acquire samples with the
robotic arm,” said Chris Lewicki of the NASA’s Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, California, which is running the Phoenix
mission.
The first sample will come from the top layer of
soil in one of three holes near the spacecraft.
It will be dug up from one of three holes near
the lander with its 2.35-meter (7.7-foot) titanium and aluminum
backhoe-like arm, with a scoop on the end.
Photographs have already revealed around Phoenix
what appears to be significant ice, uncovered when dust was blown
off the surface by the lander’s rockets.
Lewicki said the samples would be transferred by
the arm to the thermal and evolved gas analyzer (TEGA) aboard
Phoenix, one of several instruments designed to analyze soil
samples.
“We’ll clarify tonight that we’ve got an
acceptable amount of sample,” he said, before moving the sample to
the TEGA, which will cook the sample with extremely high heat to see
if it can detect the presence of carbon and hydrogen, key to
sustaining life.
Phoenix landed on the Red Planet’s northern
polar region on May 25 for a three-month job of inspecting the soil
for the right combination of water in its ice form and minerals that
would demonstrate the planet could or can support basic microbial
life.
Since the landing Phoenix has been recording
images of the stark surrounding landscape and measuring the
atmospheric conditions and weather.
The mission continues to be hampered by glitches
in communications between Phoenix and the Odyssey Mars orbiter,
which relays instructions and data between Earth and the lander.
NASA has been using as a backup the Mars
Reconnaissance Orbiter for communications.
“We expect the next day or two, we’ll be
able to resume service” with Odyssey, said Chad Edwards, JPL chief
telecommunications engineer.
-- AFP
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