WASHINGTON — In one of the most remarkable engineering feats of
our time, the aging Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity are still
taking orders and sending home pictures more than five years
after they were supposed to turn into slabs of space junk.
Opportunity is still rolling along, but Spirit is hung up on a
rock and may be reaching the end of its travels. The rovers'
masters at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.,
hope they can nurse either or both of them through another harsh
Martian winter. "I'm very attached to them," said John Callas,
the rover project manager. "They exhibit human-like qualities.
They have trials and tribulations. Like aging humans, they've
got arthritic joints, they forget things, their vision is not
what it used to be. When something's not right, you get that
sinking feeing in your stomach.'' Resembling golf carts loaded
with cameras and scientific instruments instead of drivers and
putters, the six-wheeled robotic geologists have delivered a
cornucopia of informati