Phoenix (spacecraft)

Phoenix was a robotic spacecraft on a space exploration mission on Mars to search water and life there under the Mars Scout Program.It was launched from Florida on 4 Aug 2007 and landed safely on Mars on 25 May 2008.

Mission scientists used instruments aboard the lander to search for environments suitable for microbial life on Mars, and to research the history of water there. It found that there was water in the soil on Mars.

The mission ended on November 10, 2008.

Phoenix (spacecraft) Media

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  A labeled look at NASA's Phoenix Mars lander.

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  Phoenix during testing in September 2006

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  A comparison of sizes for the Sojourner rover, the Mars Exploration Rovers, the Phoenix lander and the Mars Science Laboratory.

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  Phoenix Mars Lander being worked on by NASA engineers. The planned operational life of the Phoenix lander was 90 Martian days. Each Martian day is 40 minutes longer than an Earth Day.

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  The robotic digging arm. Left: at landing, with covering in place. Right: the next day, with covering pushed aside.

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  Surface Stereo Imager (SSI) built by the University of Arizona.

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  Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer (TEGA).

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  Mars Descent Imager built by Malin Space Science Systems.

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  A prototype wet chemistry beaker showing some of the electrochemistry sensors on the sides of the beaker.

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  Illustration of how the wet chemistry lab onboard Phoenix mixes a Martian soil sample with water