PASADENA, the United States, Jan. 24 (Xinhuanet) -- NASA engineers have made progress in fixing its malfunctioning Mars rover Spirit as its twin, Opportunity, closed in for a landing on the Red Planet.

    Scientists found a possible flaw in the rover's computer memory, Charles Elachi, director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which runs the Mars mission, told reporters Saturday.

    Elachi said scientists managed to reset Spirit's computer and put the rover into what's called "cripple" mode to bypass software problems. Now scientists have upgraded the rover's status from critical to serious.

    "I am completely confident, without any hesitation, that I think we will get that rover back to full operation," Elachi said.

    Spirit began to malfunction on Wednesday when it ceased communicating with Earth. The six-wheeled rover resumed transmitting data on Friday, but only in limited batches.

    Spirit's twin, Opportunity, is scheduled to land on the Mars Saturday night, beginning a mission to search for signs of water on the Red Planet. Enditem