NASA spacecraft reaches Mars

NASA's Phoenix spacecraft has completed a 10 month journey by successfully landing on Mars.

It is based near the red planet’s north polar permanent ice cap and has been maintaining a continuous radio signal with mission control.

During a 90 day mission, Phoenix will investigate the possibility of primitive life on the planet by studying soil and ice.

There are digital recordings of books by famous authors on board the unmanned spacecraft, including Voltaire, Aleksey Tolstoy, Ray Bradbury, Kurt Vonnegut and Arthur C. Clarke.