Overview

The Phoenix Mars Mission was the first man-made probe ever sent to the Martian Arctic. They wanted to find out how climate change can turn a warm, wet planet (read: Earth) into a cold, barren desert (read: Mars). Some might call it a trivial pursuit, but it's probably the most impressive feat we humans can achieve, and it took the culmination of nearly the entirety of human knowledge to do it. Along the way, the Phoenix discovered a giant frozen ocean trapped beneath the north pole of Mars, exotic food for aliens, and liquid water. This is not science fiction. It's fact. Not bad for a summer holiday.

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9781605981765

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Reviews

Readers will thrill to this slightly offbeat firsthand account of scientific determination and stubborn intellect...This behind-the-scenes look delivers a fascinating journey of discovery peppered with humor. A candid and precise account of the ups and downs of a space mission. This book shows what it is to participate in a short and intense landed Mars expedition. It gives the feel of the pressure and excitement at mission control, where engineers, managers and scientists work together while trying to satisfy contradictory requirements, showing the human side of science with refreshing honesty. -- Nilton Renno, Professor of Atmospheric and Space sciences, University of Michigan It is as if I imagined Holden Caulfield writing about the mission. Martian Summer is a riot. -- Peter Smith, Professor, Lunar and Planetory Laboratory, University of Arizona, and Principal Investigator of the Phoenix Project

When I think about the Phoenix mission, I think about Andrew Kessler. I usually picture him in the back of the room while I am being challenged on the discovery of liquid water on Mars.--Nilton Renno, Professor of Atmospheric and Space sciences, University of Michigan

Author Information

Andrew Kessler is a writer living in Brooklyn. His work has appeared in The New York Times and on The Discovery Channel. He holds a degree in mathematics from the University of California at Berkeley and works as a creative director at HUGE. Martian Summer is his first book about Mars-or any planet for that matter.

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