Check out this cool picture from the Phoenix Mars Lander of sunrise in the Martian Arctic.
Scientists picked a landing location on the Arctic plains because data from orbiting
Odyssey spacecraft indicated lots of water ice in the area, mostly in the form of permafrost.
The researchers figured that would be a good place to look for organic chemicals in the dirt
and ice. Up until now, Phoenix, which landed May 25, has been going about its business
in the “land of the midnight sun” located deep inside the Martian Arctic Circle.
But now there is a hint of autumn in the air. On August 21, the 86th day after
Phoenix landed, the sun set for the first time this season — rising again about 30 min later.
Now the days will get shorter and the nights longer until the sun finally sets for
the season later this fall.
NASA has extended the Phoenix Lander’s mission through September, and will
almost certainly do so again. Eventually, the cold and dark of winter will set in, ice sheets
will advance, and Phoenix will die a frigid death — probably some time in November.
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