The European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft performed a major maneuver today, changing its initial “capture” orbit achieved on Chirstmas morning to a new orbit needed for the probe’s scientific investigations of the Red Planet. The main engine of Mars Express fired for four minutes to turn the spacecraft into the new direction while flying 188,000 kilometers away from the planet.
December 30th, 2003
Mission Controllers Prepare for Maneuver
Mission controllers were preparing Tuesday for a crucial maneuver to redirect Europe’s Mars orbiter nearer to the Red Planet’s poles the first step in pushing it into a lower orbit where it can listen for its missing Beagle 2 surface probe. The British-built Beagle 2 is believed to have reached the Martian surface early on Christmas Day, its impact softened by gas bags and parachutes. But several attempts to hear its signal have not been successful.
December 30th, 2003
Oops! Beagle is stranded The Sun
Britain’s Beagle 2 space probe may be stranded in a giant crater on Mars. Scientists have been unable to contact the tiny
December 30th, 2003
Silent Beagle could be stuck in large crater The Scotsman
FIRST they admitted that communications between Beagle 2 and the nearest spacecraft had never been tested. Now scientists leading Britain
December 30th, 2003
Astronomers fear Beagle is trapped in deep crater The Independent
The British Government would back another mission to Mars if the present Beagle-2 attempt fails, the Science minister, Lord Sainsbury of Turville, said yesterday. British scientists now think that the missing lander, which entered the planet’s atmosphere on Christmas Day but has since sent back no signals, could have fallen into a crater known to be in the middle of the landing zone and may be damaged, or unable to get any sunlight to recharge its batteries.
December 29th, 2003
The Search Continues for Beagle 2 The Planetary Society
With Mars Express safely in orbit around the Red Planet, all ears are turned towards the Martian surface in an effort to detect a signal from Beagle 2, the United Kingdom
December 29th, 2003
Listening for Beagle 2 Astronomy.com
Four days after Beagle 2 was expected to touch martian soil, the European Space Agency (ESA) still has received no word from its lander. Scientists don’t know whether a hardware or software failure is preventing the signal from being given, whether current detection methods are insufficient to pick up the signal, whether Beagle 2 landed off-target, or whether it landed safely at all.
December 28th, 2003
There Sunday Herald
A TOP member of the Beagle 2 team has admitted after the failure of more attempts to find Britain
December 27th, 2003
Scientists and engineers still waiting to hear from Beagle 2 on Mars
Two attempts to communicate with Beagle 2 during the last 24 hours – first with the 76 metre (250 feet) Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire, UK, and then this morning with the Mars Odyssey orbiter – ended without receiving a signal. Despite this outcome, fresh attempts to scan for a signal from Beagle 2 will be made over the coming days. Meanwhile, scientists and engineers are eagerly awaiting ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft return close enough to Mars to try to establish contact with Beagle 2. This may be possible from 4 January 2004.
December 26th, 2003
No confirmation yet of Beagle 2 Mars landing
UK scientists are still trying to pick up a signal from the Beagle 2 Mars mission landing craft. They say they are still optimistic that the mission can be successful despite the failure of a second attempt to pick up a signal. A similar attempt yesterday by the NASA spacecraft Mars Odyssey had also proved unsuccessful.