This picture shows the area within Isidis Planitia where scientists hope Beagle 2 will land. The orange oval is where they hope the lander will touch down. The oval is 174 km (108 miles) long.
Click on image for full size
Image courtesy European Space Agency (ESA) - Illustration by Medialab
Mars Express Landing Site - Isidis Planitia
The European Space Agency (ESA) launched a mission to Mars called "Mars
Express" in June of 2003. The Mars Express spacecraft has two parts:
an orbiter that
will circle the Red Planet for at least one Martian year (687
Earth days), and a lander
named "Beagle 2" which touched down on the surface of Mars on December 25, 2003.
Beagle 2 landed in a flat area called "Isidis Planitia" that is inside an old crater.
Isidis Planitia is just north of the equator on Mars. Isidis Planitia is
very low, and may have
been a lake or a bay along
the edge of an ocean. Beagle 2 will search for life on
Mars. Places that have or had water are the best places to search for life.
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