Images taken by a NASA's Mars orbiter indicate that Europe's missing landing craft fell to the red planet's surface from a height of 2 to 4km and was destroyed on impact, the European Space Agency says.
The disc-shaped 577kg Schiaparelli probe, part of a broader mission to search for evidence of life on Mars, descended to the planet's surface on Wednesday to test technologies for a rover that scientists hope to send in 2020.
But contact to the vehicle was lost around 50 seconds before the expected landing time, leaving it uncertain until the NASA images were received whether Schiaparelli made it to the surface in good working conditions.