28 May 2008
Photo credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
A telescopic camera aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft imaged NASA’s Mars Lander Phoenix during its Martian landing. In the stunning image, Phoenix Mars Lander is suspended from its parachute during the lander's successful plunge into the Martian atmosphere on 25 May.
The image was acquired with the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on MRO. It is the first image ever of a Martian landing pictured by another spacecraft in orbit around the Red Planet.
Meanwhile, scientists cheered initial images from Phoenix, the first ever taken from the surface of Mars' polar regions. Phoenix beamed information reporting that it was in good health after its first night on Mars, and the Phoenix mission team sent the spacecraft its instructions list for the day.
Further Reading
Phoenix Mars Mission
http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/index.php
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/phoenix/main/index.html
Aymen Mohamed Ibrahem
Senior Astronomy Specialist