From: dr.o@xxxxx.euronet.nl.retro.com   
      
    wrote in message   
   news:6bt0vvg74u74eeeige64l8ubusj6sl7d90@4ax.com...   
   > My Votes:   
   > 4)Something stupid, Forgot to remove the packing tape holding the lid shut   
   etc....   
      
   This one may not be as stupid as it sounds. I remember a Beagle animation   
   where, upon landing, some sort of metal belt was removed by pyrotechnics. If   
   the thing can't deploy the solar 'petals' pretty quickly, the batteries will   
   wear out within a couple of hours.   
      
   A battery failure soon after ejection could be another possible culprit,   
   resulting in a 'dead' lander entering the Martian atmosphere and crashing   
   into the ground. Did they test the batteries (by switching off Mars Express'   
   power supply to Beagle) before ejecting the thing?   
      
   >   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)