News Archive

Friday, January 2, 2004 Spirit Set to Land Tomorrow Mars Exploration Rover. Credit: NASA Only a week off the heels of the European Space Agency's questionable success, NASA will land Spirit, the first of the twin Mars Exploraiton Rovers, on the surface of Mars late Saturday. Hoping to share the same success that the Sojourner rover enjoyed back in 1997, principle scientist Steve Squyres feels that the mission has a lot going for it. The rovers boast power, mobility, and a landing system that has actually been tested. Even though they won't be ready to begin moving for nine days after their arrival, the rovers will be capable of traveling nearly hundreds of times farther than Sojourner. Red Colony.com has been talking about this moment since the mission was announced in 2000, and we've interviewed Mr. Squyres twice. You can find the interview and more about Spirit and Opportunity, including all of the gadgets they're carrying, at the Missions to Mars page. Opportunity is scheduled to land on January 24th. @ 10:33 EST