NASA's highly successful Mars Global Surveyor space probe completes its primary mapping mission today with more than 60,000 images beamed back to Earth. The program also has funding to continue monitoring the mysterious planet for another 14 months. For one martian year 687 Earth days the spacecraft has meticulously scoured the face of Mars from a vantage point 240 miles above the planet's surface. Its observations have startled scientists and revived debate about the possibilities of liquid water relatively close to the surface of Mars.
Water is believed to be a key ingredient for biological life to arise.
Dust Storm on Mars Mars Global Surveyor uncovered evidence of a large ancient ocean, as well as rock deposits typical of lakes and shallow seas. It found that Mars once had a magnetic field and that volcanism played a greater role in the planet's history than previously thought. Olympus Mons Volcano Scientists want to continue to use surveyor's high-resolution camera to hunt for gullies along cliff walls and in craters. The channels may have been carved by water. The probe also will be used to hunt for landing spots for future missions.