martian weather

Like painted kites, those days and nights
went flyin' by
The world was new, beneath a blue
umbrella sky

Then softer than a piper man,
one day it called to you
And I lost you, I lost you to
the summer wind...

NASA engineers are hoping those words, famously crooned by Frank Sinatra, don't come true this summer for the unflappable Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity.

Summer is approaching on Mars, and with it comes the onset of huge wind storms that kick dust around the twin Mars Exploration Rovers and their life-giving solar panels.

Houston, you have a problem. It's a problem that isn't fixable with duct tape and a carbon dioxide filter. And the problem isn't just with Houston; it also affects Cape Canaveral, Cleveland, Huntsville, Pasadena, Washington, D.C.especially Washington, D.C.and other NASA centers around the country.