Could Europe Bypass NASA’s Mars Sample Return Efforts?

By early next decade, the European Space Agency (ESA) could potentially find evidence of past or present life on Mars through its ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover, providing long-awaited answers about the existence of life on the Red Planet. The projected launch of this rover in 2028 gives ESA a chance to surpass NASA in the hunt for astrobiological discoveries by at least two years.

NASA, on the other hand, is relying on a sample return mission with its Perseverance rover to confirm the possibility of Martian life. However, the return samples are not expected to reach Earth until 2033 at the earliest.

Prior to the launch of the Rosalind Franklin rover, much remains uncertain. However, this rover has several advantages. MOMA (the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer) is the centerpiece of the ExoMars rover and has been developed through a collaboration between Germany, the U.S., and France.

ESA’s rover is scheduled to land on Mars in October 2030. Unlike NASA’s rovers, Rosalind Franklin will primarily rely on solar power during its nominal mission, which spans about seven months. The rover is expected to cover a distance of 70 to 100 meters while sampling subsurface sediments, and it will begin data collection immediately after landing.

Investigating Mars’ Ancient Ocean

The ESA rover has the potential to shed light on whether Mars once hosted a northern ocean, which is believed to be the only large body of water that existed on the planet. The landing site for the Rosalind Franklin rover in the Oxia Planum region is situated near the southern tip of this hypothetical ancient ocean.

Jorge Vago, the ExoMars Project Scientist, states, “It has a delta at the very tip of our landing ellipse that is dated at 3.9 billion years… the entire area all the way to Mars’ North Pole must have been inundated by several tens of meters of water.”

About four billion years ago, microbial colonies potentially thrived in hydrothermal systems beneath the surface of Oxia Planum. The volcanic activity on Mars at the time would have deposited sedimentary ash on the ocean’s surface, preserving microbial colonies as microfossils. The cold temperatures beneath the surface would have further contributed to their preservation.

Vago explains, “Once Mars lost its surface water, it turned very cold… Dig a foot and a half below the surface and the temperature is minus 60 degrees Fahrenheit; it’s a wonderful freezer.”

MOMA will vaporize the collected compounds to be detected by the rover’s mass spectrometer, which measures the chemical makeup and mass of substances in gaseous states. To avoid contamination, MOMA will use a laser to separate organic compounds from minerals instead of thermal heat.

Vago expresses confidence in finding organic molecules but acknowledges the challenge of determining if they suggest the presence of life. The ability to differentiate between past and present life also poses a scientific challenge.

When it comes to proving life, Fred Goesmann, MOMA’s Principal Investigator, believes that official statements are more likely to claim the only explanation for the results is life, rather than making definitive assertions.

In the search for evidence of past life, Vago emphasizes the importance of confirming a variety of independent biosignatures through repeated testing with multiple samples.

The ultimate goal is to build a compelling body of evidence that points to the presence of biology, according to Vago.

Denial of responsibility! TechCodex is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.