Comments on: First Images from Phoenix

By: ZAMEER

ZAMEER — Thu, 29 May 2008 18:58:27 +0000

GOOD LUCK MY DREAMS PHOENIX I WESH YOU THEANK YOU NASA

By: gudenboink

gudenboink — Tue, 27 May 2008 20:03:15 +0000

They named this mission Pheonix due to the fact that the first polar lander crashed and burned in 1998 and this is due to rise from the ashes of that mission.

Does anybody remember the 1998 Polar mission that crashed because they forgot to change the calculations from feet to meters? The lander thought it was 10 feet off the ground (ish) when it was in fact 10 meters off the ground.
There's a nice little dent at the south pole somewhere with an ex-JPL employees name on it !

By: marcellus

marcellus — Tue, 27 May 2008 03:35:41 +0000

That white thing was a periscope from a recon vehicle sent by the Martians that live in "the pyramid complex" near the Face on Mars at Cydonia.

Duh.

Well done Phoenix!!

By: Kevin White

Kevin White — Tue, 27 May 2008 02:26:01 +0000

Yah, I'm interested in confirmation, but I actually wouldn't be too surprised (or skeptical) if the official explanation were along the lines of just a CCD glitch. It could certainly be a man-made object from this or another mission (heat shield, parachute part, etc.) although the odds of something appearing within Phoenix's field of vision are probably pretty low.

I'm curious as to whether it is reproducible (as opposed to something that appears only in that early photo) — and if so, how far away it is.

I've chuckled at a few of the humorous "speculations" (my favorite is that it's just a "moisture vaporator" as on the fictional planet Tatooine). But I do think NASA should provide a sound explanation relatively soon so that the science can begin! All we need is mainstream media latching on to this and letting it overshadow the mission, or conspiracy theorists running with it…

By: kiwimars

kiwimars — Mon, 26 May 2008 23:05:09 +0000

That vertical white mark you talk about Kevin sure looks like something, I could imagine that it could easily be the heat shield wedged into the ground, I eagerly await news on this, at the moment it seems to have been largely ignored by most media outlets/websites so thanks for pointing me to this, would not have seen it otherwise and now i know what the reporter in the press conference was on about, unfortunately the nasa guys fobbed off his question, generally they seem very reluctant to say anything that might be proved wrong later, can't entirely blame them for that but it is frustrating. The phoenix official website does not have this photo displayed yet, i guess they are trying to keep it low key to avoid too much attention until they have had a chance to verify for sure what it is. Someone did joke that it was a polar bear, probably some tabloid paper is now reporting this as a serious comment.

By: Awad El-Mekki

Awad El-Mekki — Mon, 26 May 2008 22:16:32 +0000

The 'soil' surrounding the leg of Phoenix was disturbed as much as I would do here in earth walking on a sandy beach! An immense success for the NASA scientists. Very well done indeed..

By: Rafael

Rafael — Mon, 26 May 2008 16:38:45 +0000

Once the orbiting Mars Odyssey spacecraft zero's in on the location, we'll surely see images of the discarded parachute. Standby because we'll also see the Phoenix Lander itself bravely resting on this alien tundra.

By: Richard

Richard — Mon, 26 May 2008 16:33:58 +0000

Landscape looks a bit lke Arizona maybe why they named the mission Phoenix

By: soar

soar — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:54:37 +0000

Congrats Phoenix.

By: Helio George

Helio George — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:53:28 +0000

Super Duper! Nice Flying Phoenix!

I wonder if we'll see the parachute?

By: JC

JC — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:12:07 +0000

The reason for black and white is that you get higher quality and less noise (among other benefits) when you dedicate the entire CCD to luminance (this is not exactly correct, but it will suffice).

In any event, the primary reason for NASA besides the quality, is that you can pass various filters in front of the lens and get all sorts of results. You can also derive color images by taking passes behind Red Green and Blue filters. In addition, you can use infrared and other filters sensitive to various elements.

By: neoguru

neoguru — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:03:43 +0000

I still do not understand how liquid water could ever exist for any reasonable length of time on Mars. I've never heard a reasonable explanation. It's COLD on Mars!

By: Ash

Ash — Mon, 26 May 2008 12:57:22 +0000

I remember hearing on Nasa TV that Phoenix does have the ability to take colour images, but I guess it's not a priority right now. When the orbiter is overhead, Phoenix will be transmitting more important data because the mission is in the characterization phase. I'm looking forward to those colour pics though!

By: aditya

aditya — Mon, 26 May 2008 12:56:26 +0000

where's the ice i thought it landed on the poles

By: robbb

robbb — Mon, 26 May 2008 12:12:32 +0000

Amazing shots. Great detail. Am also wondering if there will be color images?

By: owen

owen — Mon, 26 May 2008 12:06:16 +0000

good luck phoenix

By: Peter Brouwer

Peter Brouwer — Mon, 26 May 2008 11:16:37 +0000

Get a life……….Doesn't look like a real inspiring place to look for life. The Mariner Valley seem's more scenic. I also noted the lack of Martian plants on the surface…….

By: Robert R

Robert R — Mon, 26 May 2008 10:05:12 +0000

On Uranus.

By: Mr. LAME

Mr. LAME — Mon, 26 May 2008 09:35:19 +0000

soo wheres oil?

By: laneyz

laneyz — Mon, 26 May 2008 08:29:31 +0000

any colour photo's? forgive my ignorance but why only black and white…

By: Al Hall

Al Hall — Mon, 26 May 2008 07:49:20 +0000

BRAVO!!..

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 26 May 2008 06:13:29 +0000

Kevin White,
The spot is consistent in both pictures(the complete shot and the incomplete one). Maybe ET is waving hello?

By: Mac Tonnies

Mac Tonnies — Mon, 26 May 2008 05:53:21 +0000

What wonderful news! I'm in a celebratory spirit!

By: A person

A person — Mon, 26 May 2008 05:45:42 +0000

CONGRATULATIONS Pheonix !!Wishing you al the best all the way :] Find us some life!

By: Kevin White

Kevin White — Mon, 26 May 2008 02:54:24 +0000

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/mars/phoenix/images/lg_347.jpg

^Just at the edge of the horizon, about two-thirds of the way from the left, a little vertical white mark â€” dust on the lens, lens flare, a jpeg artifact, a glitch in the CCD/CMOS of the camera â€” ?