NASA and ESA select instruments for first joint mission to Mars in 2016

Magellan Crater on Mars, 2009. Credits: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin (G. Neukum)

In 2009, the two space agencies came to an agreement on conducting robotic missions to Mars. The agreement calls for two missions to Mars in 2016 and 2018, and a sample return mission in the 2020s.

The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, scheduled to launch in 2016, is the first of three joint robotic missions to Mars planned by NASA’s Mars Exploration Program and the European Space Agency (ESA). 

Today the agencies announced the five instruments they selected for the first mission from among 19 proposals submitted by international scientists. The orbiter will carry five science instruments plus a European entry, descent and landing demonstrator vehicle. The orbiter will also serve as a communications relay for Mars surface missions.

The orbiter instruments will study the chemical makeup of the Martian atmosphere focusing on trace gases, including methane, which could be potentially geochemical or biological in origin and be indicators for the existence of life on Mars.  

ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter/ESA illustration

The new technology will provide 1000 times more sensitivity in detection than previous Mars orbiters, according to NASA.

The agencies said they chose the instruments with the “best science value and lowest risk.” Teams working with instruments reflect participation from Europe and the United States, with hardware contributions from Canada and Switzerland.

"Independently, NASA and ESA have made amazing discoveries up to this point," said Ed Weiler, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. "Working together, we'll reduce duplication of effort, expand our capabilities and see results neither ever could have achieved alone."

David Southwood, ESA director for Science and Robotic Exploration, said, "To fully explore Mars, we want to marshal all the talents we can on Earth. Now NASA and ESA are combining forces for the joint ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter mission. Mapping methane allows us to investigate further that most important of questions: Is Mars a living planet, and if not, can or will it become so in the future?"

The instruments and principal investigators:

Mars Atmosphere Trace Molecule Occultation Spectrometer - A spectrometer designed to detect very low concentrations of the molecular components of the Martian atmosphere: Paul Wennberg, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif.

High Resolution Solar Occultation and Nadir Spectrometer - A spectrometer designed to detect traces of the components of the Martian atmosphere and to map where they are on the surface: Ann C. Vandaele, Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, Brussels, Belgium.

ExoMars Climate Sounder - An infrared radiometer that provides daily global data on dust, water vapor and other materials to provide the context for data analysis from the spectrometers: John Schofield, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

High Resolution Color Stereo Imager - A camera that provides four-color stereo imaging at a resolution of two million pixels over an 8.5 kilometer (5.3 mile) swath: Alfred McEwen, University of Arizona, Tucson.

Mars Atmospheric Global Imaging Experiment - A wide-angle, multi-spectral camera to provide global images of Mars in support of the other instruments: Bruce Cantor, Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego.

The 2018 mission will set the stage for joint return missions beginning in the 2020s. Plans for the 2018 mission include sending rovers with drilling and sample collection capabilities, a landing system and a launch vehicle.