RED

There is a small group of die-hard, star-hungry, space fanatics who have been following the Mars lander expedition. I may be wrong, but it seems we must be a relatively tiny group because there has been so little press on the whole thing... even though the Phoenix's mission is unlike anything every done on Mars before.

I'm not sure Andy and I qualify as space fanatics, but we do have a vested interest in this particular trip. One of our creative brain children has to do with Mars in the future, and so we are very interested to see what more we can learn about the planet and its history.

The latest news (which is very exciting) is the lander may have discovered ice, which means the hoped-for plan to drill for ice cores on the surface and to test the frozen water for organic materials and gases may be a go.

This could change everything we know about Mars. Which is huge. Yet, NASA has still struggled to capture the nation's interest; our collective consciousness seems to be focused on much more pressing issues like gas prices, grocery bills, and natural diasters. All more than understandable.

But a tiny little part of me still hopes for something immense and exciting - proof of water, the possibility of life, the chance of a reimagined history. Every now and then I check in to see how things are going... see what we've found out.

I find it equally comforting, humbling, and inpsiring to think about what an amazingly immense and complex universe we live in - how vast and miraculous it is. Mysterious... beautiful... and evolving. I can't wait to see what we discover next.