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Phoenix Mars Lander Updates

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the still-no-water-yet dept.

spandex_panda writes "There are a few pictures of the Mars Lander on the ground — you can see its parachute and its heat shield a few kilometers away, too. There's a very cool looking picture of it floating down, actually captured while it's in the air with its parachute out!" We also have a YouTube video all about the robot arm that will dig down and probably find a groundhog who we all hope will see his shadow.

2 of 138 comments (clear)

  1. This might be a dumb question... by imyy4u3 · · Score: -1, Troll

    but don't parachutes need air resistance to work? If there is no atmosphere/air on Mars, why in the world do we have a parachute on the lander? I would think it would be about as effective as opening a parachute in space...as in nothing happens. Also, "captured while its in the air" might not be an appropriate way to summarize the article as there is no air on Mars.

    Can someone please explain why we are wasting our money putting a parachute on the lander? Is it really just for this "cool picture" that NASA posted?

  2. HOAX HOAX HOAX by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    It's a hoax by NASA to ensure future funding that could be better spent on REAL things.