ExoMars
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Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (January 2007) |
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This article or section documents a scheduled or expected spaceflight. Details may change as the launch date approaches or more information becomes available. |
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| ExoMars | |
 ExoMars rover model at ILA 2006 (Berlin) |
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| Organization | ESA |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Orbiter, Lander, Rover |
| Orbital insertion date | 2014 |
| Launch date | Guiana Space Centre (Kourou) in 2013 |
| Launch vehicle | Ariane-5 ECA |
| Mission duration | 180-sol (6 month) mission (rover) |
| Webpage | Aurora Flagship mission page (including ExoMars) |
| Mass | 140-180 kg |
ExoMars is a European-led space exploration mission, currently under development by the European Space Agency (ESA), that will send a robotic rover to the surface of Mars. The mission began as part of ESA's Aurora programme. ExoMars will combine technology development with investigations of major scientific interest. It is a robotic mission which will provide Europe with new technologies for the exploration of Mars, specifically the Entry, Descent and Landing System (EDLS), the surface Rover and its Drill and Sample Preparation and Distribution System (SPDS).
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[edit] Mission
The mission will be launched on a Ariane 5 ECA from the Guiana Space Centre (Kourou) in 2013. The ExoMars spacecraft will consist of an Orbiter, the Carrier Module and a Descent Module, consisting of the Entry, Descent and Landing System, the Rover Egress System with a small scientific payload, and the Rover itself with the main scientific payload.
The rover will weigh about 140-180 kg, comparable to the American Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity. Instrumentation will consist of the 10 kg Pasteur Payload and the Geophysical Science Package, containing, among other instruments, a large drill.
In 2014, after 9 to 10 months of flight the Orbiter with the Carrier and Descent Modules attached will enter Martian orbit. The landing from an orbiter makes it possible to wait for a storm free period and to land with a higher accuracy.
The Carrier Module will deliver the Descent Module to Mars from a hyperbolic approach trajectory. Once safely landed on the Martian surface, ExoMars will deploy the rover. The solar-powered rover will begin a 180-sol (6 month) mission, while the landing module will monitor its environment for at least six years.[1]
The rover will use solar arrays to generate electricity. To counter the difficulty of remote control due to communication lag, ExoMars will have autonomous software for visual terrain navigation and independent maintenance.
After the lander has been released and landed on the surface of Mars, the orbiter would transfer itself into a more suitable orbit where it would be able to operate as a data-relay satellite.
Originally, ExoMars was part of European Space Agency's Aurora programme as a Flagship mission.
[edit] Mission objectives
The main scientific objectives of the ExoMars mission are:
- to study the biological environment of the martian surface, and to search for possible martian life, past or present,
- to characterize the Mars geochemistry and water distribution
- to identify possible surface hazards to future human missions, and
- to improve the knowledge of the Mars environment and geophysics
Other objectives are to develop the technologies in various fields. These developments are necessary for the ExoMars mission as well as later robotic and human missions to be successful. These are:
- landing of large payloads on Mars,
- solar electric power on the surface of Mars,
- mobility on the surface of Mars
As of November 2007, a short list of potential landing sites has been announced:[2]
[edit] Science
The science package Pasteur will hold a variety of instruments to study the environment of Mars. The current proposal as according to the Pasteur Progress Letter 4[3] is as follows:
[edit] Panoramic instruments
These are instruments that have a panoramic and long range view, some of them underground.
- Panoramic Camera System (PanCam) is used for navigation and imaging the surrounding area. It consists of two wide angle stero cameras and a high resolution camera.[4]
- Mars Infrared MApper (MIMA) is an Infrared Spectrometer and makes remote detection of water possible. [5]
- Water Ice and Subsurface Deposit Observations on Mars (WISDOM) is a Ground-penetrating radar[6]
- Permittivity Probe - Search for subsurface ice and water
- Neutron scattering - Search for subsurface ice and water
- Radon Exhalation - Search for subsurface water
[edit] Contact instruments
These instruments will be used to study the surface and rocks by direct contact.
- Close-up Imager (CLUPI) Is a camerasystem for the close up imaging for the rover surrounding area.
- Mössbauer Spectrometer (MIMOS II) the miniature Mössbauer Spectrometer, of the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany, that was already used by the two rovers in NASA's Mars Exploration Rover mission.
- (DIBS) Drill System
[edit] Analytical laboratory instruments
These instruments are placed internally and used to study collected samples.
- Microscope will scan the samples from the drill before milling.
- Raman spectrometer/Laser induced breakdown spectrometer (Raman/LIBS)[7][8]
- Urey Instrument[9] consisting of the Subcritical Water Extraction (SWE), the Mars Organics Detector (MOD) and the Mars Oxidant Sensor (MOI).[10] and the Microchip Capillary Electrophoresis (CE).[11] - The water extracts from the soil and rock samples will contain many soluble compounds, which can be further analysed for amines and other organic molecules.
- Molecular Organic Molecule Analyzer (MOMA) consisting of a laser desorption ion source and a GC-MS which is similar to the instruments on Rosetta and Huygens - The laser desorption ion source is capable to evaporate organic moleculs even if they are not volatile, while the GC separates the highly volatile small molecules within the gas chromatograph. The final analysis of both instruments is done with an ion trap mass spectrometer.
- Specific Molecular Identification of Life Experiment (SMILE) or Life Marker Chip (LMC) is an instrument to detect biomarkers from possible past or present life. The binding of organic molecules to molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) or to antibodies is observed by of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) or fluorescently labeled tracers.[12]
- Mars X-Ray Diffractometer (Mars-XRD) - Powder diffraction of X-Rays will give exact composition of the crystalline minerals.[13][14]
[edit] Hazards/Environment instruments
These are used to study the environment on Mars and all instruments became part of the GEP.
- Ionizing Radiation Sensor - To measure cosmic and solar particles
- UltraViolet - Visible Spectrometer (UVIS)
- Atmospheric Relaxation and Electric Field sensor (ARES)
- Martian Environmental DUst Systematic Analyser (MEDUSA) is a Dust Instrument Suite
- Advanced Environmental Package (METEO-ATM) - Meteorological study
[edit] Geophysics & Environment Package (GEP)
In addition, following the April 2005 Birmingham meeting, it has been proposed that the lander carries a suite of fixed instruments dedicated to Mars internal geophysics and environment study. This "package" will measure geophysics and environment parameters, which are of first importance to understand Mars and its long term habitability. This will include monitoring seismic, tectonic and volcanic activity, as well as measuring the magnetic field, UV radiation, dust deposition, wind, and humidity. It should survive at least six years on Mars, allowing to initiate long term environment variations, and will allow to initiate a first network of scientific stations at the Mars surface.[15]
- Frost point and humidity sensor (MiniHUM)
- Deep-sounding ground penetrating Radar (EISS)
- Suite of metereological sensors (METEO-AEP)
- Dust instrument suite (MEDUSA)
- Radio science instrument (LaRa)
- Atmospheric relaxation and electric field measurement (ARES)
- UV-VIS spectrometer (UVIS)
- Radiation instrument (IRAS)
- Magnetic observatory (MSMO)
- Ultra broad band seismometer (SEIS)
- Heat flow and physical properties package (HP3)
[edit] Mission news
The ExoMars Mission was approved by Europe's space ministers in December 2005. As this mission is still in the early planning stages, the information here and on ESA's website is preliminary. As discussed above, the European Space Agency (ESA) has pushed back the launch of its rover mission to Mars from 2011 to 2013. The move to 2013 will allow more time for negotiating a new budget, reflecting a growing will to push for an upgrade to the ExoMars project which could raise its cost from roughly 500 m euros to 800 m euros. [1]According to the BBC, the ExoMars design team is now currently looking at a rover concept that is bigger than the 650m-euro "baseline" version approved by ministers in 2005.[16][17]A Richmond, B.C.-based technology firm announced Tuesday that is has won a one-million-euro contract with EADS Astrium of Britain to design and build a prototype Mars rover for the European Space Agency. MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.'s (MDA) prototype of the robot chassis, will be used in the upcoming ExoMars mission, and is scheduled to be completed for testing by the agency by next year.[18]Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain said the agency will kick off the detailed definition Phase B of the ExoMars lander mission, slated for launch in 2013, as planned at the end of this year. However, approval for Phase C/D full-scale development will have to await the next ESA ministerial summit on Nov 25-26, 2008. [19]
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Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] See also
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[edit] References
- ^ ExoMars - Mission Architecture (from the European Space Agency website)
- ^ BBC NEWS | Science/Nature |Europe eyes Mars landing sites
- ^ Progress on the development of the ICAPS Dust Particle Facility (DPF)
- ^ A. D. Griffiths, A. J. Coates, R. Jaumann, H. Michaelis, G. Paar, D. Barnes, J.-L. Josset (2006). "Context for the ESA ExoMars rover: the Panoramic Camera (PanCam) instrument". International Journal of Astrobiology 5 (3): 269–275. doi:.
- ^ G. Bellucci (2004). "MIMA: Mars Infrared MApper for Finding Carbonates Sulfates and Organics" (abstract). EGU.
- ^ Corbel C., Hamram S., Ney R., Plettemeier D., Dolon F., Jeangeot A., Ciarletti V., Berthelier J. (2006). "WISDOM: an UHF GPR on the Exomars Mission". Eos Trans. AGU 87 (52): P51D–1218.
- ^ J. Popp, M. Schmitt (2004). "Raman spectroscopy breaking terrestrial barriers!". J. Raman Spectrosc. 35: 429–432. doi:.
- ^ F. Rull Pérez, J. Martinez-Frias (2006). "Raman spectroscopy goes to Mars". spectroscopy Europe 18: 18–21.
- ^ A. M. Skelley, A. D. Aubrey, P. J. Willis, X. Amashukeli, A. Ponce, P. Ehrenfreund, F. J. Grunthaner, J. L. Bada, R. A. Mathies (2006). "Detection of Trace Biomarkers in the Atacama Desert with the UREY in situ Organic Compound Analysis Instrument". Geophysical Research Abstracts 8: 05275.
- ^ A. M. Skelley, F. J. Grunthaner, J. L. Bada, R. A. Mathies. "Mars Organic Detector III: A Versatile Instrument for Detection of Bio-organic Signatures on Mars".
- ^ A. M. Skelley, J. R. Scherer, A. D. Aubrey, W. H. Grover, R. H. C. Ivester, P. Ehrenfreund, F. J. Grunthaner, J. L. Bada, R. A. Mathies (2005). "Development and evaluation of a microdevice for amino acid biomarker detection and analysis on Mars". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 102: 1041–1046. doi:.
- ^ M.R. Sims, D.C. Cullenb N.P. Bannister W.D. Grantc O. Henryb R. Jones D. McKnight, D.P. Thompson, P.K. Wilson (2005). "The specific molecular identification of life experiment (SMILE)". Planetary and Space Science 53: 781–791. doi:.
- ^ A. Wielders, R. Delhez (2005). "X-ray Powder Diffraction on the Red Planet" ([dead link]). Int. Union of Crystallography Newsletter 30: 6–7.
- ^ R. Delhez, L. Marinangeli, S. van der Gaast (2005). "Mars-XRD: the X-ray Diffractometer for Rock and Soil Analysis on Mars in 2011" ([dead link]). Int. Union of Crystallography Newsletter 30: 7–10.
- ^ P. Lognonné, T. Spohn, D. Mimoun,*, S. Ulamec, J. Biele (2006). "GEP-ExoMars: a Geophysics and Environment observatory on Mars". Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII.
- ^ BBC NEWS | Science/Nature |Design boost for European rover
- ^ BBC NEWS | Science/Nature |Request made for Mars rover price
- ^ B.C. robotics firm lands Martian contract. CanWest News Service.
- ^ Aviation Week : Europe Delays ExoMars Start
