Mars rovers now faced with space sandstorms

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WASHINGTON (AFP): After three years on Mars, NASA rovers built for a three-month mission face their toughest foe: Martian sandstorms blocking the sunlight that charges their batteries.
As a result, NASA has ordered rovers Spirit and Opportunity nearly into hibernation, cutting communication with Earth to save vital energy for heaters that keep their delicate innards from freezing.
"We're rooting for our rovers to survive these storms, but they were never designed for conditions this intense," said NASA associate administrator Alan Stern.
By Tuesday, NASA stopped any driving and all Opportunity's science observations, but the rover was still using more energy than its solar panels could generate, and drew down its battery.
"The only thing left to cut were some of the communication sessions," said John Callas, project manager for the twin rovers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.
That was the first time either rover had been told to skip communications for a day or more to save energy.