"Nearly two weeks after its historic landing, scientists operating the U.S. Mars probe Phoenix are still trying to deliver a soil sample into one of the instruments, mission scientists said Monday."

"Though images relayed back to Earth showed the dirt sitting on top of TEGA, detectors inside the instrument indicated that none of the soil particles had fallen through the screen at the entrance to the oven.

According to scientists, the soil could be clumping together for several reasons, including the presence of salts that bind the material together or moisture in the soil that developed during landing and cemented the particles together. These factors, combined with the large amount of dirt delivered to the instrument, seem to be keeping the sample from getting in the oven for heating."

http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7011221168