Did the Mars Polar Lander phone home last month, and will it ever do so again? Since last Dec. 3, when the spacecraft vanished shortly before it was scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet (SN: 12/11/99, p. 373), scientists have been searching for a signal that the lander might still be alive. In January, just as NASA announced it had given up efforts to make contact with the craft, a faint ray of hope emerged.
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