Apparently, Phoenix is a web-savvy little lander, and has been twittering since before landing. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Twitter has been called “micro-blogging”: posts can be a max of 140 characters. People can use it to keep others updated on the minutiae of their lives. For most people most of the time, it seems like this would be incredibly dull to me, but it’s perfect for the Phoenix mission! Here’s a sample set of twitters from the landing:

Atmospheric entry has started. time to get REALLY nervous. Now I’m in the “seven minutes of terror.”

Peak heating will hit in 40 seconds. The heat and energy generated during atmospheric entry would be enough to power 280,000 homes.

parachute must open next. my signal still getting to Earth which is AWESOME!

parachute opening is scariest part for the team.

parachute is open!!!!!

come on rocketssssss!!!!!

I’ve landed!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers! Tears!! I’m here!

I love it. To read more about Phoenix and its use of twitter, check out this article in the New York Times.