Mars lander sets off to break new ground

Posted by jburk to Mars Polar Lander at January 3, 1999 12:00 PM

The first interplanetary lander to follow Mars Pathfinder’s trail has begun a mission that will take it where no probe has gone before: the Red Planet’s polar regions. Mars Polar Lander, launched from Cape Canaveral on Sunday, will analyze the atmosphere and subsurface soil to solve puzzles surrounding the planet’s climate — and could even let Earthlings hear the sounds of Mars for the first time.