A New Mars Mission Begins

A new mission to Mars started Monday with the launching of the ExoMars orbiter from Kazakstan. Designed to analyze the Martian atmosphere, the Trace Gas Orbiter and Schiaparelli probe, also called the Entry, Descent and landing demonstrator Module, will take about 7 months to reach Mars.  The ExoMars mission site highlights the goals of the mission:

• Search for signs of past and present life on Mars;
• Investigate how the water and geochemical environment varies; and
• Investigate Martian atmospheric trace gases and their sources.

While NASA was once a partner with the European Space Agency on this mission, the Russian Federal Space Agency is the new partner.  Part two involving a rover will launch sometime in 2018.

Both Europe and Russia have had some Mars SNAFUs in the recent past, so they know the dangers involved in these missions.  More observers, probes, and rovers should assist us in our understanding of Mars and its potential for visitors at some later point.