RIP: Mars digger bites the dust after 2 years on red planet

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is giving up trying to drill deep into Mars to take the red planet’s temperature. Scientists in Germany spent two years trying to get their heat probe deep into the Martian crust.

Photo Courtesy: NASA. In this illustration of NASA’s InSight lander on Mars, layers of the planet’s subsurface can be seen below, and dust devils can be seen in the background.

But the device on NASA’s InSight lander couldn’t gain enough friction in the clumpy red dirt to hammer down more than a couple feet.

It was supposed to bury 16 feet into Mars. Following one last unsuccessful attempt to hammer it down last weekend, the team called it quits.

The lander’s other instruments will continue to monitor for quakes and provide daily weather reports.