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ExoMars orbiter and Schiaparelli lander reached Mars on this day

The Trace Gas Orbiter entered Mars orbit that day and is still searching for methane; the Schiaparelli lander, sadly, was not part of that sequel.

▶ As it aired · Weird News

Watch it as it aired: Kenji Moonfield and Hank Ledger on this story, from Late Night BBN at 10:44 PM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are Space.com's, the jokes are ours.

At a glance

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

What BBN said about it

  1. Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorSpace.com says that on this day in twenty sixteen, Europe's ExoMars orbiter and the Schiaparelli lander arrived at Mars, and we have the orbiter's pictures.

  2. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentRoll it. Look at this, cratered terrain with ridges, and the camera just glides over it. That's a clean pan.

  3. Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorIt's a rock with holes in it.

  4. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentWatch the dark streaks here, across the light ground. That is elite texture. Run it back.

  5. Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorWhere's the lander? It weighed five hundred seventy-seven kilograms and had a six-minute descent planned. I'm looking for it.

  6. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentNot in frame. Officials suspect it never fired its descent thrusters, and a data glitch was cited as the cause.

  7. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentSo this is the only clean landing footage.

  8. Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThere's no landing in it.

  9. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentViral Score, seven out of ten. Four points for the ridges, three for the lander staying out of shot.

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The story so far

  1. Swift at Chiefs game, Mars moon mission, priest killed in Ecuador · Yahoo
  2. NASA's Mars rover passes Opportunity's driving record · FOX Weather
  3. Clayface and The Terminal List lead this week's Europe picks · Euronews
  4. Japan launches mission to grab a piece of Mars's moon · BBC
  5. Study finds most of Europe's wild bee species in decline · The Guardian
  6. Japan launches mission to collect rocks from Mars's moon Phobos · The Guardian
  7. ExoMars orbiter and Schiaparelli lander reached Mars on this day (this story)

From the archive: everything BBN aired on Monday, October 19, 2026 · the Weird News archive · all months