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A radio glitch between the Phoenix Mars Lander and a Mars orbiter has delayed the start of planned science experiments on the red planet.

At the moment there's no communication between the lander and Earth.

Mission leaders had hoped to deploy the lander's robotic arm today. But that first phase of work with Mars' soil and icy layer will have to wait until at least tomorrow, said Fuk Li, manager for the Mars Exploration Program at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

The delay in the arm's deployment also means that digging into the planet's soil and icy layer won't begin until later this week.

The glitch is something Li classifies as a "transient event," and it could have been caused by a cosmic ray.

Li said the JPL team is in the middle of deciding what to do about the problem but doesn't think it will have any long-term detrimental effect on the overall mission. He corrected a reporter who referred to it as a failure.

The radio problem is with the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), which has been orbiting Mars since 2006. Li said the orbiter has not ever had a problem like this.

The issue is with the UHF radio the orbiter is using to communicate commands to the lander. There are two other orbiters in the Mars atmosphere - NASA's Mars Odyssey and Europe's Mars Express, which could step in for the Mars Reconaissance Orbiter if the problem isn't fixed, officials said.

"We will just have to ask Odyseey to work harder," Li told reporters. "But right now, bear with us, and we'll see if we can wake up the MRO."

Li doesn't believe the problem has anything to do with the lander.

The link had been working Monday, as the lander had communicated through the orbiter during its entry, descent and landing. Also, the Canadian Space Agency has already been able to measure the weather on Mars.

But the communication today didn't work.

"All this is, is a one day hiccup," said Ed Sedivy of spacecraft builder Lockheed Martin.

Other than the radio glitch, mission leaders remain satisfied with the lander's performance since Sunday.

A high-powered imager has snapped a picture of the lander with its solar panels deployed and mission leaders today said they are ready to do their research.

Photos snapped by a high powered camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has sent back images of the lander on the ground with its solar panels deployed. It also sent back images of the parachute and heat shield, jetissoned from the lander during descent, lying on the ground near the spacecraft.

The imager, actually a spy satellite, is called HiRise — High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment — and is aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. UA professor Alfred S. McEwen, is the principal investigator for the HiRise.

The HiRise also took a widely-praised photo of the lander during its descent phase, too, when its parachute was deployed.

The spacecraft landed in a valley that's about 30 miles wide, which scientists have nicknamed "Green Valley," principal investigator Peter H. Smith said. There are also some mesas in the background.

"I suspect it's a non-issue and I would guess we're back online tomorrow," Smith said. "At this point I'm not worried at all."

More news on the radio glitch is expected later today.