Mars Pathfinder and its robot sidekick, Sojourner, officially bit the Martian dust last week. The dynamic duo, which sent back 16,000 pictures of Mars' rocky surface, were retired by NASA. Pathfinder sent its last signal on October 7.
The unmanned craft performed heroically. It lasted about three times as long as its intended 30-day life-span on Mars.
Pathfinder and Sojourner provided evidence that Mars once had flowing water and a much warmer atmosphere. More amazing facts may be found in the pile of data NASA has yet to study.
"We have returned more information than anyone could have hoped for," said project scientist Matthew Golombek.
NASA suspects icy Martian weather ended messages from Pathfinder. But solar-powered Sojourner may still be tooling around Mars, gathering data no one will ever receive.