The new mission to Mars

by twit

The Associated Press reports on June 26, 2008:

The Phoenix lander’s first taste test of soil near Mars’ north pole reveals a briny environment similar to what can be found in backyards on Earth, scientists said Thursday.

“There’s nothing about it that would preclude life. In fact, it seems very friendly,” mission scientist Samuel Kounaves of Tufts University said of the soil. “There’s nothing about it that’s toxic.”