Water on Mercury, that's the message from Messenger this week on planetary radio. Hi everyone, welcome to Public Radio's travel show that takes you to the final frontier.

I'm Matt Kaplan. Messenger principal investigator Sean

Solomon returns to our show on the heels, the winged heels, of some amazing

announcements about our solar system's innermost planet.

What in the world is water doing there?

That's the question all right.

Out at the other end of the system is frozen Pluto

and Bill Nye is thrilled about its new name or classification.

We've got Emily Lachowala too.

Her Q&A will tell us about the importance and the future of the Mars Odyssey spacecraft.

And way down the line, we'll be joined by Bruce Betts. of the Mars Odyssey spacecraft.

And way down the line, we'll be joined by Bruce Betts.

He's up at NASA's Ames Research Center this week,

but we still have a Wally video game to give away

in the What's Up Space Trivia Contest.

Wow, here's reason to celebrate.

The door to one of those little ovens on the Mars Phoenix Lander

has opened up just like it should, which is to say all the way. Emily has the story and a picture in

her blog at planetary.org, where you'll find other news from Beyond Our Pale Blue Dot. I'll be right back with Sean Solomon. Here's Bill.

Hey, Bill Nye, the planetary guy here, Vice President Planetary Society. You know, I am so

very excited. Pluto, as you know, for so very excited.

Pluto, as you know, for a last couple of years,

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