... 8.01.1999 . ... Credit: Courtesy JPL , NASA Explanation: These technicians are working on the solar-paneled Mars Polar Lander - yet another robotic spacecraft scheduled to invade the red planet . Mars Polar Lander is part of a series of missions focusing on a search for evidence of past or present life. Successfully launched atop a Delta II rocket on January 3rd, it should be the first to make a soft landing near Mars' South Pole. ... Publications with keywords: Mars - spacecraft . ...