Mars Lander gets course adjustment

Engineers on Friday made a third adjustment in the trajectory of the Phoenix Mars Lander, a crucial step toward ensuing a successful landing on the Red Planet next month.

The adjustment was made so the spacecraft would arrive in the desired location, in the planet’s northern polar region.

Previous adjustments in August and October put the Lander on path to reach Mars.

The UA is leading the mission on behalf of NASA. The spacecraft launched Aug. 4 and is projected to land May 25.

The mission will be the first to dig into Martian terrain to search for traces of water in Mars’ past and to determine the planet’s viability to sustain future life.

Law alumna to get ‘Phenomenal’ award

The UA Alumni Association’s Alumni Club will give Daisy Jenkins, who graduated from the College of Law in 1996, its annual Phenomenal Woman Award on Friday.

Jenkins is the first woman of color to be named a vice president at Raytheon Missile System. She holds the post for the company’s human resources department.

Earlier this year, she received the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award for Diversity at the National Black Engineer of the Year Conference.

She was also the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce’s 2007 Woman of the Year.

Jenkins presently serves on the College of Law’s Board of Visitors, which consults with the dean and faculty about the college’s operations and plans.

She is an executive sponsor on the Black Law Student Association and serves on President Robert Shelton’s African American Diversity Advisory Council.

– Information taken from university releases