Mars lander takes shape

Posted by tourdemars to Mars Express at July 23, 2002 12:00 PM

Final assembly work on the British-designed Mars lander, Beagle 2, has begun. The craft is being assembled at the Open University in Milton Keynes, UK. "It's a momentous day because you're starting with the building of something you know will eventually end up on Mars," the OU's Professor Colin Pillinger told BBC News Online at the Farnborough International Air Show. Beagle 2 will hitch a ride on the European Space Agency's Mars Express.