OTD In Space - August 4: Phoenix Mars Lander Launched

On Aug. 4, 2007, NASA launched its Phoenix Mars Lander on a mission to touch down on Mars.

The robotic spacecraft was designed to search for environments that could be suitable for microbial life and to study the history of water on the Red Planet. It lifted off at about 5:30 a.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida and spent almost 10 months making its way to Mars. When it arrived at the Red Planet, it landed farther north than any spacecraft had ever gone before. Not only did Phoenix find water-ice, but it also found what appeared to be small globs of liquid water.