Photos: NASA grapples with Martian dirt dilemma

One method that NASA is field testing on the Phoenix Lander is having the robotic arm release small amounts of soil above the filters which would allow small particles to fall through. Here, the robotic arm has "tossed" soil on the top of the Phoenix Lander to see how it might work.

NASA is also considering smashing the samples with the robotic arm as it is scooping them from the ground.

Photo by NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M