Evolution of the Scientific Instrumentation for <em>In Situ</em> Mars Exploration

Mars has always been a magnet for the human curiosity. The more we know about the red planet and its past, the more complex are the unanswered questions. In order to answer them, an ambitious long-term plan for the robotic and manned exploration of Mars has been established by the scientific community worldwide. To ensure success in answering the issues to be investigated on each step of the plan, the selection of “on board” payloads at mission level is specifically designed for achieving the best possible results. This selection also has modified the mission operation modes from a set of individual experiments to a cooperative science paradigm where all the instruments in the mission payload contribute jointly to achieve unprecedented scientific results. Collaboration not only between experiments but also between agencies for achieving major goals has been demonstrated as the optimum way forward for Mars exploration. This chapter presents a historical review, with a look into the future, of the human efforts aimed at understanding the red planet, focusing on the technological advances and scientific discoveries achieved that help answer some of the most thrilling and transcendental questions ever raised by humanity: Are we alone in the Universe

The high-resolution map of Oxia Planum, Mars; the landing site of the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission

This 1:30,000 scale geological map describes Oxia Planum, Mars, the landing site for the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission. The map represents our current understanding of bedrock units and their relationships prior to Rosalind Franklin’s exploration of this location. The map details 15 bedrock units organised into 6 groups and 7 textural and surficial units. The bedrock units were identified using visible and near-infrared remote sensing datasets. The objectives of this map are (i) to identify where the most astrobiologically relevant rocks are likely to be found, (ii) to show where hypotheses about their geological context (within Oxia Planum and in the wider geological history of Mars) can be tested, (iii) to inform both the long-term (hundreds of metres to ∼1 km) and the short-term (tens of metres) activity planning for rover exploration, and (iv) to allow the samples analysed by the rover to be interpreted within their regional geological context

The Raman Laser Spectrometer (RLS) for 2020 Exomars (ESA) Mission: Instrument development and operation on Mars

International audienceRaman Laser Spectrometer (RLS) is part of the Exomars 2020 key instruments devoted to the analysis of samples collected below the Martian surface. This paper aims to describe the instrument technical characteristics, the scientific performances and the operation it will perform on Mars in the context of Exomars 2020 rover mission

Deuterated PET: The new verification target of the Raman spectrometer for the MMX mission to explore Phobos

JAXA's upcoming MMX (Martian Moons eXploration) mission will deliver a small rover to Phobos, to explore its surface complementary to the MMX orbiter and the sample return lander. On board this rover is a Raman spectrometer, the RAX Instrument (RAman Spectrometer for MMX), a payload to science. RAX has been designed for being capable to analyze the mineral composition of the Phobos' surface, in order to help reveal the nature and distribution of materials on the surface and ultimately the origin and evolution of the moon. Attached to MMX spacecraft, with direct view from the RAX instrument, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) target will be placed for on-ground and during cruise, spectral instrument performances verification, before the MMX rover is released and dropped to the Phobos surface for developing its scientific tasks. A novel deuterated PET material was proposed as verification target (VT) to check the spectral instrument performances. INTA-CAB developed, manufactured and qualified for the MMX-RAX space mission, 13 mm diameter and 2-mm thick pellets of this material, which incorporates two relevant improvement characteristics: reduction in fluorescence and additional Raman bands with regard to ordinary PET used with this purpose. The material was selected as RAX VT and delivered to DLR for performance tests and later integration into the MMX rover together with the RAX flight model. The RAX VT will be critical to check the instrument performances during the several months cruise phase after launch and just before its landing on Phobos surface. This paper reports the development and characterization of the deuterated PET

The high-resolution map of Oxia Planum, Mars; the landing site of the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission

International audienceThis 1:30,000 scale geological map describes Oxia Planum, Mars, the landing site for theExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission. The map represents our current understanding ofbedrock units and their relationships prior to Rosalind Franklin’s exploration of this location.The map details 15 bedrock units organised into 6 groups and 7 textural and surficial units.The bedrock units were identified using visible and near-infrared remote sensing datasets.The objectives of this map are (i) to identify where the most astrobiologically relevant rocksare likely to be found, (ii) to show where hypotheses about their geological context (withinOxia Planum and in the wider geological history of Mars) can be tested, (iii) to inform boththe long-term (hundreds of metres to ∼1 km) and the short-term (tens of metres) activityplanning for rover exploration, and (iv) to allow the samples analysed by the rover to beinterpreted within their regional geological context