Mars Rover May Be Permanently Stuck
The Mars rover Spirit traveled millions of miles to the red planet and has been sending back NASA scientists a wide variety of pictures and data.
But now it appears the rover may have come up against an obstacle it can’t overcome.
The rover has been stuck in the sands of Mars since May and yesterday NASA scientists said they may not be able to get it out.
“There is a very real possibility that Spirit may not be able to get out,” John Callas, the rover project manager, wrote in a status report yesterday.
Engineers have been using a duplicate rover on Earth to try to replicate Spirit’s situation on Mars. The rover became mired in soft soil at a site called “Troy,” back in early May. More practice runs are planned before NASA will send commands to try to get Spirit moving.
Said Callas, “We are proceeding very cautiously and exploring all reasonable options.”
Were Howard, Leonard and Sheldon messing around with that again!?!