Steve Squyres Quotes on Place (5 Quotes)

They provide a wonderful glimpse into what Mars was like in the earliest part of its history, ... It was a violent place. It was a place where meteorite impacts were happening frequently. It was a place where there volcanic explosions happening frequently. Hot stuff was raining from the skies. There was water. When rocks were deposited, water would flow through those rocks and change their chemistry. This is a glimpse into the ancient past of Mars.

Spirit has given us a wonderful window into the very ancient past of Mars. It was a violent place, a place where meteorite impacts, volcanic explosions happened frequently, where hot stuff was raining from the sky.

That kind of stuff is hard enough to drive in with six wheels, and with five it was just about impossible. It was really frustrating, being that close to the place we wanted to get to and not being able to reach it.

The hill is very steep in places ... and the orbital images show a lot of tasty geology, some of it in pretty nasty-looking places. All in all, the next several weeks are going to present us with some of the most interesting route-finding decisions that we've faced in a long time, on both sides of the planet.

Before launch it just seemed impossibly far away, it seemed unreachable. Tonight, I go out knowing our rovers have been there a whole Martian year...it's a much more familiar planet. We know the place.