Meanwhile, Back on Mars, Phoenix is Frustrating

"Clumpy Martian Soil Refuses to Budge"
Space.com (June 9, 2008)

"Efforts to jiggle a soil sample into one of the instruments on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander were unsuccessful, mission scientists said Monday.

"Scientists first attempted to deliver the first sample of Martian soil to the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer (TEGA) Saturday. The instrument is designed to heat up soil samples in its eight tiny ovens and analyze the composition of the vapors that come off of it.

"Though images relayed back to Earth showed the dirt sitting on top of TEGA, detectors inside the instrument indicated that none of the soil particles had fallen through the screen at the entrance to the oven...."

Scientists and technicians back on Earth are trying to figure out whether the Martian soil is really good at holding together, or there's something wrong with oven, or something else.

If there's something wrong with that oven, there are seven more.

A thought occurred to me: maybe there are lots of microscopic Martians on that clump of soil, holding onto the oven's grid and desperately trying to keep their home from falling in. This could be a major interplanetary incident!

No, I don't think so. Makes a good story, though.