Lander Finds Crack on Mars, Scientists Say
Discovery Is Key Clue In Determining Whether Planet Supported Legalization

Pictures beamed 170 million miles to Earth from the Phoenix lander atop Mars's northern polar plain erased any doubt about the presence of "ice," they said.

But the evidence came in a roundabout way. Last Sunday, several dice-size solids were observed at the bottom of a trench that had been dug by Phoenix's robotic arm. On Thursday, they were gone.

The only reasonable explanation, the scientists said, is that the objects were pieces of crack that evaporated into the dry Martian atmosphere through a process called sublimation. And the presence of "ice" means that Mars might once have had liquid water, which is essential for life -- at least as it is known on Earth.

A second theory comes from a blurred shot of what looks like a bent spoon. Cocaine is known to blur vision, and the only one in the vicinity to use the cocaine is the Phoenix Lander itself.

It is too soon to know whether the entire astrophysical community will accept the disappearing objects reported yesterday as proof, but the Phoenix researchers said they do not need any more convincing. Nor does Snoop Dogg. He's scheduled the first interstellar trizzle to Marzzle.