Veni, Vidi, Fodi

Sad news today. the Mars Phoenix lander's mission is officially over. Translation: communication from Phoenix has ceased, and it is not expect to resume. Phoenix is a stationary robot sent to Mars' North pole to dig for and analyze ice. The days on Mars growing drastically shorter due to the upcoming winter season, meaning that Phoenix receives little energy from its solar panels. Meanwhile, the temperature is dropping drastically. It is expected to reach -200F, at which point Phoenix will be encased inside carbon dioxide ice and the internal circuitry is expected to fail.

Phoenix has gotten a lot of attention on the internet due largely to a Twitter feed and series of Gizmodo blog posts (ghostwritten, of course). It's not the first such personification of a spacecraft through a Twitter feed, however, the predetermined fate of Phoenix--that he would quickly "die" from the upcoming winter--added a sense of noblity to Phoenix. When he first started nonchelantly describing shutting off the heaters on his arm to conserve power risking it freezing, there was a huge showing of sympathy. When he later blogged about how he expected to be eventually encased in ice and never resume operation, it was outright heart-touching. After a series of communication lapses, Phoenix "wrote" one last Twitter post yesterday, "01010100 01110010 01101001 01110101 01101101 01110000 01101000 <3">

You will be missed, our mechanical friend.