0505 GMT (12:05 a.m. EST) 
NASA officials will be holding a post-landing press conference at 12:30 a.m. EST.
0500 GMT (12:00 a.m. EST)
With Spirit on the surface, it will use motors retract the airbags. This operation could take an hour to complete. The lander then will open up like a flower, lowering its petals to reveal the rover tucked inside. Since Spirit has landed with its base petal down -- the best case scenario -- the opening will take less time.
Next, the rover will deploy its power-generating solar panels. It can begin taking some pictures of the landing site once the arrays are deployed. Those initial images, if snapped this evening, could be released by NASA within hours.
0455 GMT (11:55 p.m. EST)
The spacecraft has landed with its base petal down.
0453 GMT (11:53 p.m. EST)
The Mission Control room is a wild place at the moment with handshakes, screams and some very happy tears.
0452 GMT (11:52 p.m. EST)
SPIRIT IS ALIVE ON MARS! A "very strong signal" is now being received from the Spirit rover from the Gusev Crater on the surface of the Red Planet!
