Check out these new views of Mars’ moon Phobos, taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) back on March 23.

Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

The two images were shot 10 minutes apart. At the time, MRO was a couple hundred miles above the surface of Mars, traveling 7,800 mph. Phobos, which is just 13.5 miles wide, was about 4,000 miles away. Given the distance, the clarity and resolution of the images is remarkable.

The principal feature on the moon is undoubtedly the Stickney crater, on the bottom right in these pictures. It’s about 5.5 miles in diameter, and was formed by a very large impactor. Also very noticable is the blue material around the rim.

“Based on analogy with material on our own moon, the bluer color could mean that the material is fresher, or hasn’t been exposed to space as long as the rest of Phobos’ surface has,” said Nathan Bridges with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, in a statement.

Mars also has a second, even smaller moon, Deimos. Scientists think the moons might be asteroids from the asteroid belt that got caught in Mars’ gravitational field. If so, they are different from Earth’s moon, which many scientists think formed from shattered rock jettisoned into space when Earth was hit by a massive asteroid or comet shortly after the planets formed 4.5 billion years ago.

–Kate Tobin, Senior Producer, CNN Science & Technology

Perhaps it’s only a coincidence that on this April Fool’s Day, Google has announced an extraordinary initiative to improve your e-mail experience.

Eric Schmidt, chairman and CEO of Google, which unleashed its annual April Fools initiatives today.

With Custom Time, you can change the time stamps on up to ten e-mails per year to make it look like you didn’t miss deadlines, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. But wait! If you make it so that an e-mail was sent in the past, wouldn’t that have affected subsequent events? Apparently Google can even smooth out related kinks with its “e-flux capacitor” to “resolve issues of causality.” One user apparently told Google, “I used to be an honest person; but now I don’t have to be.”

Even more exciting, Google claims to have teamed up with Virgin Group to launch Virgle, the first human colony on Mars. You can even apply to join the venture by answering the questionnaire. You’d better think really hard about how you would respond in tough situations. What would you do if “unexpectedly confronted with the emergence of a bewilderingly alien and frighteningly advanced Martian life form” that “appeared bent on killing” you if you “failed to quickly and effectively communicate my peaceful intentions and potential value to its civilization”? Once you’ve got that down, submit a 30-second video through YouTube explaining why you want to live on Mars. It’s just that simple, fool.

–Elizabeth Landau, Associate Producer, CNN.com

Budget woes won’t force NASA to shut down one of two Mars rovers operating on the red planet, an agency spokesman told CNN Tuesday, a day after one of the program’s team leaders said an ordered budget cut could end the rover Spirit’s tour of duty.

Spirit Self-Portrait. Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell

Mars Exploration Rover program principal investigator Steve Squyres told CNN Monday that the program had received a directive to cut $4 million out of it’s 2008 budget, and that would mean his team would have no choice but to shut down one of the rovers.

But now NASA spokesman Bob Jacobs says that directive is being withdrawn.

“A letter was sent directing reductions in several areas of the Mars exploration program. However, this letter was not coordinated with the Office of Administrator and is in the process of being rescinded. Administrator Michael Griffin has unequivocally stated that no rover will be shut down.”

Squyres had said cutting 20 percent of the program’s $20 million budget would likely force mission managers to put the “Spirit” rover into hibernation mode.

The cut’s purpose was to offset cost overruns with the Mars Science Laboratory, a rover set to launch next year, NASA headquarters spokesman Dwayne Brown said Monday.

NASA spent $800 million to build and launch Spirit and its twin, Opportunity, to Mars. They landed about 3 weeks apart in January 2004, on opposite sides of the planet. Both were designed for 90-day missions but remain in operation more than four years later.

These robotic geologists have examined Martian rocks and soil, looking for tell-tale signs of water. They have provided detailed photographs of the planet’s barren surface and large amounts of data on the it’s make-up.

Opportunity hit pay dirt when it found evidence that a salty sea once stood in the area that is now called Meridiani Planum. Spirit has roamed miles from its landing site and climbed high into the Columbia Hills inside an area called the Gusev Crater.

Squyres indicated a budget reduction of size initially ordered would require job cuts in the staff of about 300 scientists that operate the rovers and analyze the findings. Those staff cuts, in turn, would mean science operations for one of the rovers would have to be suspended, and Spirit would have been the likely candidate because it is currently riding out the Martian winter in a parked position.

–Kate Tobin, Sr. Producer, CNN Science & Technology

Just hours after we reported that NASA budget cuts would lead to the shut down of the Mars rover “Spirit,” we received this from NASA spokesman Bob Jacobs:

“There is a process that has to be followed for any mission to be canceled and the cancellation of the Mars Exploration Rovers is not under consideration. There is an ongoing budget review within the agency’s Mars exploration program. However, shutting down of one of the rovers is not an option.”

And this from NASA Administrator Michael Griffin:

“NASA will not shut down one of the Mars rovers.”

But when I called rover principal investigator Steve Squyres back, he said he hadn’t heard anything additional from anyone at NASA, and wonders whether the directive to cut $4 million out of his budget still stands. He says it is a question of simple math…if he has to cut $4 million, then he has to shut down a rover. It’s that simple.

So questions remain.

I’ll update the blog if I get more clarification.

–Kate Tobin, Sr. Producer, CNN Science & Technology

NASA officials have directed the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) program to cut $4 million dollars from its $approximately 20 million dollar budget this year, and principal investigator Steve Squyres tells CNN that will likely mean science operations will have to be suspended for Spirit. The rover would be put in hibernation mode, and if all goes well it could be reactivated in the future in the event funding is restored.

Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell

NASA Headquarters spokesman Dwayne Brown confirmed the budget directive has been issued. He said the reason behind the cut is to offset cost overruns with the Mars Science Laboratory, a follow-on rover set to launch next year.

NASA spent $800 million to build and launch Spirit and its twin, Opportunity, to Mars. They landed about 3 weeks apart in January 2004, on opposite sides of the planet from each other. Both were designed for 90 day missions, but are still operating more than four years later. Designed to be robotic geologists, the two rovers have examined Martian rocks and soil, looking for tell-tell signs of water. Opportunity hit “pay dirt” when it found evidence that salty sea once stood on in the area that is now called Meridiani Planum. Spirit has roamed miles from its landing site and climbed high into the “Columbia” hills inside an area called the Gusev Crater.

Squyres says the money will mean job cuts in the staff of about 300 scientists that operate the rovers and analyze the science findings. Those staff reductions likely will mean that they have to suspend science operations for one of the rovers, and Spirit is the likely candidate because it is currently riding out the Martian winter in a parked position.

Squyres says he and his team will put together and issue a plan to NASA officials before they do anything, so it is unclear exactly unclear when Spirit’s science operations will be shut down. But he says he has been told to expect a $8 million budget cut in fiscal year 2009 funding.

–Kate Tobin, Senior Producer, CNN Science & Technology