How Spirit and Opportunity Got to Mars

In January of this year, two golf-cart sized rovers landed on the planet Mars to seek evidence about whether the environment there might once have been capable of supporting life. Originally intended to last 90 days and rover 600 meters, these two Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have far exceeded those expectations.

Pete Theisinger, the Manager of the Mars Exploration Rover Project through its development, and now Manager of the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory Project, will describe the challenges of developing the two Mars Exploration Rovers in just three years. He will discuss the design process, relate the myriad challenges and setbacks that had to be overcome during development and operations, and give the definitive behind-the-scenes story of the extraordinary flight and surface operations of the Rover, including some glimpses into the mission's scientific results.