This image, taken Jan. 26, 2012, shows NASA's no-longer-active
Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft after its second Martian arctic
winter. The lander has the same appearance as it did after its
first winter, as seen in an image from May 2010, at
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA13158 . Both views
are from monitoring frost patterns at the Phoenix landing site
in far-northern Mars, using the High Resolution Imaging Science
Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance
Orbiter. In August 2008, Phoenix completed its three-month
mission studying Martian ice, soil and atmosphere. The lander
worked for two additional months before reduced sunlight caused
energy to become insufficient to keep the lander functioning.
The solar-powered robot was not designed to survive through the
dark and cold conditions of a Martian arctic winter. The lander
is at the center of this image, which is one product from HiRISE
observation ESP_025786_2485. Other products from the same
observation can be found at http://hir