David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor, reports Mars probe appears to have landed atop ice in today's SFGate, the Sunday June 1 online edition:

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"It's the consensus of all of us that we have found ice," said Peter Smith of the University of Arizona, Tucson, as he talked to reporters in a conference call only six days after Phoenix landed safely from Earth. "It's shiny and smooth - it's absolutely astounding!"

But Smith did add a note of scientific caution: "It's not impossible that it's something else," he conceded, "but our leading interpretation is ice. We are looking at an extended table of ice."

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Discovered by the orbiter itself after its retro-rockets blew away the top 3-6 inches of topsoil during landing, Smith and his fellow scientists have named the patch "Holy Cow."