NASA Joins ESA to Power Rosalind Franklin Rover Toward 2028 Mars Launch
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The European Space Agency has confirmed that NASA is
stepping in to provide key hardware and launch support for the Rosalind
Franklin rover, a flagship mission preparing for its 2028 journey to Mars.
The rover—part of ESA’s long-running ExoMars program—will probe deep
beneath the Martian surface in search of signs that life may once have existed
on the Red Planet.
NASA’s Enhanced Support for the Rover
ESA Director-General Josef Aschbacher announced that NASA
will fully meet its commitments under a 2024 cooperation agreement.
Through this partnership, NASA will:
- Secure
a U.S. launch vehicle through its Launch Services Program
- Provide
radioisotope heater units to protect the rover from freezing
Martian nights
- Supply
retrorockets and other descent hardware needed for a safe landing
- Deliver
the Mars Organic Molecule Analyser (MOMA), a mass-spectrometry
instrument built with contributions from German and French partners
MOMA will play a crucial role once the rover touches down,
enabling it to study samples for organic signatures that could hint at ancient
microbial activity.
Mission Goals and How We Got Here
ExoMars is ESA’s major astrobiology initiative.
Its first component, the Trace Gas Orbiter, launched in 2016 and
continues to study the Martian atmosphere. The next phase is the Rosalind
Franklin rover, capable of drilling up to two meters below the surface—far
deeper than previous Mars missions.
This ability to collect protected, ancient samples increases
the odds of detecting preserved chemical clues related to past life.
The rover’s journey was originally planned for 2022, but ESA
halted collaboration with Roscosmos following geopolitical tensions. The
mission has since been reshaped with NASA and European partners stepping in to
supply missing landing technology and instruments, ensuring the project stays
on course for a 2028 launch window.
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#SpaceExploration #Astrobiology #RedPlanet #Mars2028 #TechMintora #SpaceScience
