9-11 Mars

In one of the strangest stories to emerge from Mars, The Sun newspaper in the UK (a tabloid with a less than impeccable record for accuracy) is reporting that components of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers used salvaged materials from the 9-11 World Trade Centre wreckage in their construction. The engineer responsible is reported to be one Stephen Gorevan, an engineer at Honeybee Robotics. That certainly cements the Mars connection, as he and his team worked on the RAT (Rock Abrasion Tool) devices carried by the rovers. According to The Sun, "Engineers used metal left after the 9/11 attacks in building credit card-sized shields for the craft." Gorevan described it as a "quiet tribute."