Partially Opened Oven on Phoenix

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Caption:

This view from the Robotic Arm Camera on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander shows partial opening of doors to one of the tiny ovens of the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer.

Each oven has a pair of spring-loaded doors. Near the center of the image, the partial opening of a pair of doors reveals screen over the opening where a soil sample will be delivered. The door to the right is fully opened and the one to the left is partially deployed. The doors are 10 centimeters (4 inches) long. The opening is 4 centimeters (1.5 inches) wide.

Tests on the Phoenix testbed at the University of Arizona, Tucson, indicate that a soil sample could be delivered into the oven through the partially opened doors. Engineers are also exploring possibilities for opening the doors more completely.This image was taken during Phoenix's eighth Martian day, or sol (June 2, 2008).

Background Info:

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter.

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