After blasing off from Earth on 8/4/2007, NASA's Phoenix Lander is scheduled to enter Mars' atmosphere on 5/25/2008 and land on the polar ice-cap. If all goes well, the solar powered robot will extend its nearly eight foot scoop and dig into the ice amd soil, seaching for the building blocks of life: carbon, nitrogen and, most importantly, water. Phoenix's goal is to prove that life either was, or perhaps is, posssible on the red planet. If it succeeds, it will change our understanding of life in the universe and its uniqueness to our planet.
