The NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have formalized a collaboration to send a European rover called Rosalind Franklin to Mars. Announced last Thursday, this agreement marks a new phase in the exploration of the Red Planet, following ESA’s breakup with the Russian space agency Roscosmos due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The mission, which had been suspended, will take advantage of the next favorable alignment between Mars and Earth (which occurs every 26 months) to launch in 2028.
The Rosalind Franklin rover, part of the ExoMars program, will search for signs of ancient life on Mars. NASA, through its Launch Services Program, will contract with a U.S. commercial provider for the launch and provide necessary heating units and propulsion system elements for landing on Mars. A highlight of this mission is a new instrument on the rover, designed to drill up to 2 meters beneath the Martian surface. This unique capability will allow for the collection of ice samples protected from radiation and extreme temperatures, increasing the chances of finding evidence of past life.
“The unique drilling capabilities of the Rosalind Franklin rover and its onboard sample laboratory have exceptional scientific value for humanity’s search for evidence of past life on Mars,” said Nicola Fox, Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, highlighting the rover’s great importance.
In addition, NASA will provide key components for the rover’s main scientific instrument, the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer, through partnerships with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the French space agency CNES. This instrument will search for the basic building blocks of life in samples of Martian soil.
The mission of the Rosalind Franklin rover will also benefit from the ongoing collaboration between NASA and the United States Department of Energy, using radioisotopic power sources for the rover’s heaters, and will complement the Mars Sample Return (MSR) multi-mission campaign, jointly led by NASA and ESA. This campaign aims to collect and bring samples from Mars to Earth for further analysis, although it is unknown if it will ultimately be carried out due to its high cost and certain logistical complications.
