The biggest threat yet to Spirit and Opportunity

The two Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars three weeks apart in January 2004. They were designed for a nominal 90 martian day (or sol, to distinguish them from Earth days, a martian day is called a sol) mission. Over the weekend, the Spirit rover passed 1500 sols. Over the course of their missions, Spirit and Opportunity have survived software glitches, getting caught in sand drifts, two martian winters, and a global dust storm that nearly cut off all their solar energy. The biggest threat yet though comes from the government agency that built and launched the rovers. Where NASA once had a solid commitment to Mars exploration, Mars gets short shrift in the latest budget. Those dollars that are being allocated to Mars exploration are largely going to support the next Mars rover, the Mars Science Lab (MSL). MSL has gone over budget and to support that mission, in NASA's zero sum budget game, dollars are being diverted from the operational budgets of existing missions- the orbiting Mars Odyssey and the rovers Spirit and Opportunity. Recently, NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) has been informed that $4 million will be taken out of the operating budgets of both Mars Odyssey and the rovers (story here). This would essentially cripple both missions and could lead to one of the rovers being turned off. This would be incredibly pennywise and pound foolish. These spacecraft are all still operating and providing excellent scientific returns. Just in the past year, the Spirit rover uncovered a patch of silica-rich soil which was certainly concentrated through the action of water- possibly in hot spring similar to those in action at Yellowstone. The fact is though that the origin of those silica rich soils is still a mystery. Further exploration of the broader area surrounding where they were discovered could uncover further clues to the early history of Mars. That chance might not come though if these NASA-ordered budget cuts come to pass. Write your members of Congress- ask them to restore operational funding for the Mars Exploration Rovers and Mars Odyssey- don't let these valuable assets be wasted.