May
13, 2008: NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing
to end its long journey and begin a three-month mission to
taste and sniff fistfuls of Martian soil and buried ice. The
lander is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet on Sunday,
May 25th.
Phoenix
will enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at almost 13,000
mph. In seven minutes, the spacecraft must complete a challenging
sequence of events to slow to about 5 mph before its three
legs reach the ground. Confirmation of the landing could come
as early as 7:53 p.m. EDT.
clipped from: science.nasa.gov 