Phoenix was the first to explore the surface of a polar region
on Mars, areas rich in water-ice (right). The spacecraft landed
farther north than any previous spacecraft to land on the
Martian surface. It was the first mission in NASA's Mars Scout
program. Phoenix inherited its lander. Originally the lander was
to be used for the Mars Surveyor 2001 program, but after the
lander portion of that program was cancelled it was kept in a
protective, controlled environment. Phoenix's robotic arm was
designed to dig trenches (right), scoop up soil and water ice
samples, and deliver these samples for analysis. The lander's
Canadian laser instrument used for studying the atmosphere
detected snow falling from clouds on Mars.