Spacewatch: Nasa tries to get Martian 'mole' working again
by Stuart Clark from on (#4H4T9)
Heat probe was supposed to dig down five metres but it came to standstill just 30cm below surface
Scientists and engineers at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, have a new strategy to get a troubled Mars instrument working again. The Heat Flow and Physical Properties Package was provided by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) for the InSight Mars lander.
The instrument's heat probe, known as the mole, should dig itself down as far as five metres into the Martian ground but came to a standstill on 28 February, having burrowed just 30cm (12 inches) below the surface.
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