2010: state of the Spirit

[ankh_hpl]

Sadly, 2010 may mark the swan song for Spirit, one of NASA's two amazingly long-lived Martian rovers.   It's been stuck in a sand trap for the last nine months, and the southern hemisphere's winter is setting in.  If the solar-powered rover can't somehow improve its tilt to gather more sunlight, it may not remain operational until spring.

For all the details on Spirit's gallant attempts to stay active & scientifically valuable -- plus some very cool pics & video of the little guy -- check out the  science_at_nasa   article here.