With the news (from CNN) yesterday that the Mars Rover Spirit had not been constructively heard from in a day, and the loss of Beagle, the Mars Explorer, and lord-knows what other Mars exploration vehicles, it leaves you to wonder if there are Martians there trying to keep us away.

Sure, Sojourner worked just fine, but as far as we know, that could have just been another faked mission to mars like Capricorn One.

Even if it did land on Mars, it may well have been in a highly controlled area, where the Martians watched carefully to make sure that their secrets were not revealed and let it survive as long as it didn't go outside of that area.

In the case of Spirit, it looks like all was fine until it started rolling, and then it moved in the wrong direct. Like an R2 unit encountering an unexpected Jawa, Spirit's little brain was fried and all it can do now is talk gibberish.

Let's hope that the next Rover, Opportunity, will be more successful in allowing us to see yet more of the Red Planet, else we will have to suffer through the ESA's gloating over their latest picture- taking mission.

Of course, with 12m resolution, a predictable orbit, and a small field of view, the Martians are able to dodge it just fine, so no need to blow it out of the sky...