NASA's InSight lander heat probe resumes working on Mars

2019-11-25 Xinhua Editor:Li Yan

NASA's InSight lander has resumed its heat flow probe digging on Mars again after months of efforts, the mission team said on Twitter.

The heat probe, also known as the "mole," was designed to dig below the Martian surface and measure the heat coming from inside the Red Planet. However, the mole has not been able to dig deeper than about 30 cm below the Martian surface since Feb. 28, 2019.

"My mole is on the move again and back to digging," the mission team tweeted Thursday.

Using InSight's robotic arm to put pressure on the mole from the side has helped it move down about 32 millimeters, said the team.

Efforts to save the mole will continue, it added.

The InSight landed safely on Mars on Nov. 26 of 2018 for a two-year mission to explore the deep interior of the Red Planet.

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