Immediately after finishing the press conference at JPL this morning, Phoenix PI Peter Smith rushed over to LAX and hopped on United Express flight 6498 to Tucson. Arriving at 3:30 pm, he hopped in a car and worked his way over to the Science Operations Center. A crowd of about 50 scientists and reporters — and even the mayor of Tucson — were waiting.

“This is sort of like when our basketball team wins a championship,” said Bill Boynton, the PI for the TEGA instrument, which will bake samples and look for organics. Smith gave out hugs and handshakes as the crowd sang, ‘For he’s a jolly good Martian.’

Smith patiently answered the TV reporters’ questions for the umpteenth time: “How do you feel? What does this mean? Will you find life on Mars?”

He really is a jolly fellow. There’s something about that silvery hair — or maybe it’s the mustache and soul patch — that adds to the mystique. He could have a long career as a Santa Claus if he ever runs out of planetary science to do.