WBUR Newsroom Election 2008 CommonHealth Blog Boston Weather BBC World News NPR Top Stories NPR's Morning Edition NPR Topics: Books NPR Topics: Movies Fresh Air All Things Considered Marketplace Submit a Story Idea RSS Feeds Podcasts Life on Mars? By Bob Oakes Listen to story (Real Audio) Artistic concept of Phoenix landing on Mars. (Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/U of Arizona) BOSTON, Mass. - May 20, 2008 - Does life exist on Mars? That's a question scientists have been asking for decades; one that Sam Kounaves hopes to answer. Kounaves is a Tufts University chemistry professor who's leading the "Phoenix Mars Mission." The spacecraft is scheduled to land on the Red Planet on May 25th after a 10-month odyssey. Once it touches down, using robotics, it will conduct a chemical analysis of the Martian soil and ice, looking for signs of life. Sam Kounaves joined WBUR's Bob Oakes for a conversation about the Mars mission. RELATED LINKS NASA's Phoenix Mission site View videos of the Phoenix Mars Lander Mars Touchdown    From The WBUR Newsroom Kennedy Will Not Return for Fall Session HYANNIS PORT, Mass. (September 07, 2008) Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) will stay at home as Congress reconvenes for the fall this week. Kennedy's doctors have avised him to work from home. Hanna Heads for New England BOSTON (September 05, 2008) State officials are keeping a close eye on Tropical Storm Hanna as it inches up the Atlantic coast. Preview: Pats' Season Opener BOSTON, Mass. (September 05, 2008) We preview the Patriots' first regular season game this Sunday. New England hosts the Kansas City Chiefs at Foxborough. aka, "The Man Mall" FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (September 05, 2008) When the New England Patriots open their regular season at home on Sunday, fans are going to see something brand new: a huge shopping mall right next to Gillette Stadium.