Martian probe "Phoenix" has analyzed the soil for the presence of salts

Martian probe "Phoenix" has analyzed the soil for the presence of salts and studied a layer of ice in the vicinity of their place of work. This was reported on the official website of the mission.

With the help of his 2.4-meter robot arm Phoenix moved the stone, has been nicknamed "headless" (Headless), at 0.4 meters to take samples of soil beneath it. The soil was taken to an atomic force microscope apparatus, which is an integral part of microscopic and chemical module MECA. The main objective analysis of the soil is a clarification of the concentration of salts. In addition, over the past two weeks Probe vyryl another trench called "La Mancha" (La Mancha). This was done to determine the depth of ice.

At present, is already the fifth month of the vehicle on Mars. Originally planned that the expedition "Phoenix" will last only two months, but NASA twice extended the completion of the mission. This is partly due to the success of the mission: during his stay at the Red Planet probe discovered water, perchlorate, as well as more recently recorded snow.

Now in the polar regions, where the probe, is autumn. The length of days, and with it, and the number of sunlight to collect batteries probe, is significantly reduced. Scientists believe that in the coming weeks, the probe will cease to work, go to the passive monitoring of weather.