MARS: The Phoenix Mission, Part 3

The Phoenix Mars Lander produces power using large solar panels, so it is only during the summer months that the mission has enough sunlight to carry out all of the experiments and the researchers work around the clock. The experiments show, that there is water in the form of ice just below the surface. But are there also other conditions for biological life? That is what the chemical analysis of the soil can reveal. Violent storms blow the dust around in the air and it is captured by the Danish dust magnets on the lander. The dust is being studied by the Danish research team from the Niels Bohr Institute. The actual airborne dust can tell about water’s effect and with that the basis for life on the harsh planet.