Curiosity (rover) no chance of obtaining funds in Europe, at that time, of the scale previously considered necessary for a Mars rover, so the team used innovative methods to reduce the cost to less than 4% of the cost of the "Curiosity" mission. They also had only one shot, with no funding for repeat missions (it was named "Beagle 2" as a successor to , not to an earlier rover). It was considered a large risk, and, although "Beagle 2" did successfully survive its entry, descent, and landing, incomplete deployment of the solar panels hampered communication back to Earth. The team has
Hard Time on Planet Earth Hard Time on Planet Earth Hard Time on Planet Earth is an American science fiction series that aired on CBS as a midseason replacement in 1989. Airing for 13 episodes, the series starred Martin Kove and was created by Jim and John Thomas. Scheduled opposite NBC's "Unsolved Mysteries" and ABC's "Growing Pains" on Wednesdays, "Hard Time on Planet Earth" ranked 65th out of 81 programs upon its premiere. Ratings for the series never improved and the series was canceled by CBS in May 1989. The last episode aired on June 21, 1989. The main character was an alien Elite Military