Inside the ESA control room as their Mars lander mission unfolds

In an attempt to look for evidence of past or present life on Mars, the European Space Agency’s Trace Gas Orbiter spacecraft braked into orbit around the red planet Wednesday, powering through a planned 139-minute rocket firing just as a small experimental lander it released on Sunday slammed into the atmosphere for a nail-biting descent to the surface.

• Mars probe successfully enters orbit; no word on lander