ExoMars (Exobiology on Mars), robotic exploration of Mars, ExoMars Rover, European Space Agency, Paris, France

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ExoMars rover self-driving software test

Published on Jan 17, 2019

A half-scale version of the ExoMars rover, called ExoMars Testing Rover (ExoTeR), manoeuvred itself carefully through the red rocks and sand of 9x9 m Planetary Utilisation Testbed, part of ESA’s Planetary Robotics Laboratory in its ESTEC technical centre in the Netherlands.

This was a test of autonomous navigation software destined for ESA’s ExoMars 2020 mission to the red planet. The two-day rover test was conducted by ESA robotic engineers, joined by a team from French space agency CNES in Toulouse. They have more than two decades of experience in autonomous navigation for planetary rovers, culminating in developing the ‘AutoNav’ suite of software that was doing the driving.

The ExoTeR rover, complete with updated software, is now set to return to Altec in Italy – home of ExoMars 2020’s rover control team – allowing them to gain experience with the added functionality of autonomous navigation ahead of ExoMars’s flight software being completed. ExoMars’s final flight software will actually carry two sets of autonomous navigation software, with another developed by Airbus Defence and Space in Stevenage, UK.

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ExoMars Rover: from concept to reality

Published on Feb 7, 2019

The second part of the ExoMars programme is ongoing.

In Stevenage, UK, a rover is being built that will carry a drill and a suite of instruments dedicated to exobiology and geochemistry research. It will be the first mission to combine the capability to move across the surface and to study Mars at depth.

The primary goal of the ExoMars programme is to address the question of whether life has ever existed on the red planet.

The first part of the programme was launched in March 2016 with the Trace Gas Orbiter. The second part is planned for launch in 2020 and comprises the rover and surface science platform

ExoMars is a joint endeavour between ESA and the Russian space agency, Roscosmos.

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Inside the ExoMars rover

Uploaded on Feb 8, 2019

The rover, named 'Rosalind Franklin' after the prominent scientist who co-discovered the structure of DNA, will be the first rover capable of drilling down 2 m, where ancient biomarkers may still be preserved from the harsh radiation environment on the surface. The drill is housed in the box at the front of the rover, and will deliver samples to the large onboard laboratory for analysis inside the rover. The drill also contains a multispectral imager, which will image the walls of the borehole created by the drill to study the mineralogy and rock formation. A dedicated "close-up" imager will acquire high-resolution, colour, close-up images of outcrops, rocks, soils, drill fines and drill core samples.

Navigation cameras (at the top of the mast) and ‘localisation’ cameras (at the base of the mast) are used to determine where the rover is and where it will move. High-resolution scientific cameras also sit at the top of the mast and will provide stereo and 3D imagery of the terrain around the rover. An infrared spectrometer located with the cameras will determine the major mineral composition of rocks, outcrops and soils.

A ground-penetrating radar unit situated at the rear of the rover will provide a detailed view of the Red Planet's shallow subsurface structure by sounding the upper layers of its crust and detecting subsurface water-ice. This will give three-dimensional geological context of the terrain covered by the rover.

Power is supplied to the rover by solar panels. These are folded during the journey to Mars and opened once the rover is on the surface. The rover is is designed to survive the cold martian nights with the help of batteries and heater units.

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ExoMars rover science laboratory fitted

Published on May 28, 2019

The ExoMars rover’s Analytical Laboratory Drawer (ALD) was integrated into the rover at Airbus, Stevenage, UK in May 2019. The video is shown at 18 times real speed; in reality the sequence of events took around 11.5 minutes.

The ExoMars rover, named Rosalind Franklin, will be the first of its kind to both roam the Mars surface and to study it at depth. Rosalind Franklin will drill down to two metres into the surface to sample the soil, analyse its composition and search for evidence of past – and perhaps even present – life hidden underground. A miniature laboratory inside the rover – the ALD – will analyse the samples with three different instruments, with some baked in the onboard oven to release gases for analysis, a technique used to search for traces of organic compounds.

The rover will relay its data back to Earth via the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, which is already conducting its science mission from Mars orbit.

The ExoMars programme is a joint endeavour between ESA and Roscosmos.

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ExoMars – Testing locomotion

Published on May 31, 2019

The ExoMars mission will see Rosalind Franklin the rover and its surface platform Kazachok land on the Red Planet in 2021. From fine-grained soil to large boulders and slopes, the rover has to be able to move across many types of terrain, collect samples with a 2 m-long drill and analyse them with instruments in its onboard laboratory.
This first episode about Exomars gives an introduction to the challenges of manoeuvring the landscape.
A hydraulic platform filled with 20 tonnes of soil was made for the tests at RUAG Space in Zurich, Switzerland. The facility emulates all terrain conditions that Rosalind the rover is expected to encounter on Mars: different types of soil, various obstacle shapes and sizes and terrain slopes.
ESA, Roscosmos, Thales, Airbus and RUAG engineers put a full-sized model through a series of tests to fine-tune how the rover will move from its landing platform onto the martian terrain.
The tests will also develop strategies to ensure Rosalind the rover does not get stuck in martian sand or on rocks.

The six-wheeled vehicle is expected to travel several kilometres during its mission.

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ExoMars – Moving on Mars

Published on Aug 17, 2019

The ExoMars mission will see Rosalind Franklin the rover and its surface platform Kazachok land on the Red Planet in 2021. From fine-grained soil to large boulders and slopes, the rover has to be able to move across many types of terrain, collect samples with a 2 m-long drill and analyse them with instruments in its onboard laboratory.

This second episode about ExoMars features the challenges of leaving the surface platform, overcoming obstacles and walking on dunes.

ESA, Roscosmos, Thales, Airbus and RUAG engineers put a full-sized model through a series of tests to fine-tune how the rover will move from its landing platform onto the martian terrain.

Rovers on Mars have previously been caught in sand, and turning the wheels dug them deeper – just like a car stuck in mud or snow. To avoid this, Rosalind the rover has a unique locomotion mode called ‘wheel walking’.

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ExoMars progress update

Oct 15, 2019

ExoMars 2020 has passed a number of milestones. The European carrier module was delivered in March. The European rover, which contains nine instruments, has been assembled by Airbus UK and is under environmental testing in Toulouse. It should be integrated with the spacecraft by the end of the year. The spacecraft is now in the Thales Alenia Space test facilities in Cannes to start the environmental and performance verification test campaign that will last until February 2020.

However, there remain some important challenges ahead for the parachute system of the descent module. Recent balloon high-altitude drop tests were unsuccessful. As a result, the next and final two drop tests, scheduled between January and March 2020, must be fully successful otherwise the mission cannot launch in 2020.

The joint ESA and Russian mission consists of four elements: a carrier module to propel the spacecraft to Mars, a descent module, a surface science platform and the Rosalind Franklin rover, which will use its drill up to depths of two meters to search for signs of life.

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ExoMars: life on Mars?

Oct 5, 2020

ExoMars is a joint space exploration program between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian space agency (Roscosmos), designed to study the Martian surface, atmosphere and environment. It will harvest invaluable data, which will keep scientists busy for years to come. Thales Alenia Space is ExoMars overall prime contractor.

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ExoMars | Back on track for the Red Planet

Mar 13, 2023

A year has passed since the launch of the ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover mission was put on hold, but the work has not stopped for the ExoMars teams in Europe.

In this programme, the ESA Web TV crew travel back to Turin, Italy to talk to the teams and watch as new tests are being conducted with the rover’s Earth twin Amalia while the real rover remains carefully stored in an ultra-clean room.

The 15-minute special programme gives an update on what happened since the mission was cancelled in 2022 because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the plan ahead, the new challenges, the latest deep drilling test and the stringent planetary protection measures in place.

ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover has unique drilling capabilities and an on-board science laboratory unrivalled by any other mission in development. Its twin rover Amalia was back on its wheels and drilled down 1.7 metres into a martian-like ground in Italy – about 25 times deeper than any other rover has ever attempted on Mars. The rover also collected samples for analysis under the watchful eye of European science teams.

ESA, together with international and industrial partners, is reshaping the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin Mission with new European elements, including a lander, and a target date of 2028 for the trip to Mars.

The newly shaped Rosalind Franklin Mission will recover one of the original objectives of ExoMars – to create an independent European capability to access the surface of Mars with a sophisticated robotic payload.

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A mission for the Rosalind Franklin rover

Dec 13, 2023

Trailer of the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin mission.

In 2028, ESA will launch its most ambitious exploration mission to search for past and present signs of life on Mars.

Enjoy the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin mission in minute detail – everything down to the colour and size of the wires, sticky tape and scratches. The spacecraft, the rover and martian landscapes are as true to reality as possible for a simulation. The visuals show the spacecraft structural engineering with a faithful robotic appearance. The martian landscape has been simulated with meticulous realism.

The story begins with the rover exploring the surface of the Red Planet. There is science to be done. Join the adventure.

This trailer provides a first taste for the most accurate animation series made so far of a Mars mission.

ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover has unique scientific potential to search for evidence of past life on Mars thanks to its drill and scientific instruments. It will be the first rover to reach a depth of up to two metres deep below the surface, acquiring samples that have been protected from surface radiation and extreme temperatures. The drill will retrieve soils from ancient parts of Mars and analyse them in situ with its onboard laboratory.

The mission will also serve to demonstrate key technologies that Europe needs to master for future planetary exploration missions. This includes the capability to land safely on a planet, to move autonomously on the surface, and to perform drilling and sample processing and analysis automatically. The rover will use novel driving techniques including wheel-walking to overcome difficult terrains, as well as autonomous navigation software.