Interplanetary Cool Find: Russian Mars Probe

Going to space is a tricky business, and landing a probe on another planet even more so. The Soviet Union learned that in 1971 when its Mars 3 lander stopped transmitting only seconds after landing on the red planet. It's been missing ever since, but now it's location may have been discovered thanks to NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and amateur astronomers in Russia. The group sifted through images of the Ptolemaeus Crater where the craft landed and eventually found what looks like the lander itself, it's heat shield, parachute, and retrorocket. Mars 3 was the first craft to successfully land on Mars, so it's great to finally have images showing it's still there.

Check It Out: Interplanetary Cool Find: Russian Mars Probe

Interplanetary Cool Find: Russian Mars Probe