Posted by tourdemars to Mars Express at June 18, 2003 12:00 PM

Britain's Mars lander Beagle 2, currently speeding towards the Red Planet, will be activated on Friday for the first time since its launch. "This will tell us whether we survived launch," says Jim Clemmet, engineering manager for Beagle 2 at prime contractors Astrium. "It is also one of the few occasions [during the voyage] when we'll be able to check that it's healthy."