Click on the image for the animation

This artist's animation shows how NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter was able to snap a picture of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander as it parachuted down to the surface of Mars.

The purple lines shows Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's field of view.

The image of Phoenix on its parachute (see PIA10698) was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter.