Artist's impression of the British Beagle 2 lander, its four solar panels properly deployed, collecting data on the Red Planet's surface. Image: ESA/Denman productions Landing on Mars is hard, but the European Space Agency's first attempt--the Beagle 2 probe--came maddeningly close to being a complete success. In fact, a new 3D modeling analysis shows that the lander's failure to communicate with the Earth was likely due to a single jammed solar panel.
Artist's impression of the British Beagle 2 lander, its four solar panels properly deployed, collecting data on the Red Planet's surface. Image: ESA/Denman productions Landing on Mars is hard, but the European Space Agency's first attempt--the Beagle 2 probe--came maddeningly close to being a complete success. In fact, a new 3D modeling analysis shows that the lander's failure to communicate with the Earth was likely due to a single jammed solar panel.
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