ExoMars Options

[dilo]

a nice model was exposed at this year's Paris Air Show

Thanks Paolo! It seems a "small Viking" with a collapsible bottom instead of landing foots...

[Paolo]

and from Italian to Italian, I am curious to see how non-Italians are going to twist the pronunciation of "Schiaparelli"...
hint for non-Italians: "chi" is to be pronounced like "key"

[PaulH51]

I am curious to see how non-Italians are going to twist the pronunciation of "Schiaparelli"... hint for non-Italians: "chi" is to be pronounced like "key"

Found this pronunciation on the internet, accurate? LINK

[Paolo]

accurate enough!

[bobik]

Call for ExoMars 2018 Landing Site Selection

[ngunn]

The landing site criteria read pretty much like a description of Mawrth Vallis.

[Phil Stooke]

Mawrth looked like a great site until Dawn Sumner pointed out at the last MSL site workshop that it was mostly ejecta from the big crater just to the west of the MSL ellipse. The geological context of any outcrop might never be understood. Mawrth plummeted in the ranking after that. There are other interesting sites 'upstream' from the MSL site which might be better.

Phil

[ngunn]

Certainly that particular MSL spot would not do. The Exomars ellipse will be a lot longer for a start.

[algorimancer]

Now that Curiosity has provided a glimpse of a smallish lake environment, I'd like to expand this to what was possibly once a sea or ocean environment, perhaps Hellas or somewhere near the putative shore of the northern ocean (seems like there was a neat publication describing a delta region there a few years ago). Probably the latter would provide the greatest chance of encountering macroscopic organic residues (a bit of creative paraphrasing), if they exist anywhere. Of course, I'm a big fan of geology alone, which is the most likely outcome.

[dvandorn]

Hellas appears to be depleted in hydrated minerals -- at least, everything except its northern outer flanks. (As per the map of hydrated materials generated from MEX data.) I'd have to guess that the impact that created Hellas occurred after the height of Mars' warm, wet period. While there is volcanic activity and small-scale river and stream formation observed in the northern ramparts of the Hellas basin, very little is seen in the inner walls and floor.

And that's too bad, since as a very low point on Mars the atmospheric pressure on the floor of Hellas is higher than at most locations on Mars, which would make it easier to land a heavier vehicle there (more potential parachute braking effectiveness). As an impact basin, as well, most of the original materials of the Hellas basin floor would consist of impact melt, from which a lot of work would have to be done to sort out the nature of the original rocks of the target area. (Impact melt reflects the total composition of all of the units melted, so it's a rather big job to sort out what went into making up the melts. Lunar scientists are still trying to sort out the original Imbrium target rocks based on the rather basaltic impact melt obtained in Apollo samples from the Fra Mauro formation...)

-the other Doug

[stone]

I good also an invitation and I would not go to the site older than 3.6 Ga.
ExoMars searches for extant not extinct life.
A hydrothermal vulcanic region is the only point which makes sense for active biota.

The clay lake bed had its chance and it is empty and dead.
Biology needs change (new materials to work on) and energy source.
The clay lay there for 3.000.000.000 years even if there was enough
material to life and create energy from this source does not last 3Ga.

[Gerald]

I don't yet fully understand, how the science goals match with the planetary protection constraints (subsection 4.1 No Access to “Mars Special Regions” in the User's Manual).

[algorimancer]

Looking into this further, I find myself leaning rather strongly towards a site near one of the delta features on the putative shore of the northern ocean. This paper (http://www.researchgate.net/publication/232762372_Ancient_ocean_on_Mars_supported_by_global_distribution_of_deltas_and_v
alleys/file/32bfe511e3ed316b45.pdf), extensively discussed in this thread (http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?showtopic=6645&st=0) makes a strong case for the shoreline, and highlights many of the deltas on that shoreline (and convincingly shows that the deltas lie on a similar level as compared with deltas entering closed basins elsewhere). Taking estimated polar wander into account (if feasible that far back), a landing site near one of the more southerly deltas seems like just about the best target I can imagine. A nearly-as-good alternative might be remnant hydrothermal vent on the ocean floor, but probably that would lack the sedimentary record which which would be of real interest.

[Astro0]

Admin note: Let's be wary of Forum rule 1.3 in these discussions. We don't want to drift into area that would require any further action. Thanks all for your support.
http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?act=boardrules

[stone]

I don't yet fully understand, how the science goals match with the planetary protection constraints (subsection 4.1 No Access to “Mars Special Regions” in the User's Manual).

It is roughly the same story like MSL09. The rover is to dirty and the descent stage too. They are at a 300 to 3000 spores per square meter level. For special regions 0.03 spores per square meter are the maximum allowed. So neither part is allowed to end up in a special region. Landing in a nice cosy war wet place would violate the COSPAR Planetary Protection criteria.

The Drill and the whole Ultra Clean Zone which contain the Sample Preparation and Distribution system (SPDS) and some of the instruments is encapsulated and clean to the 0.03 spores per square meter level. So the drill is allowed to enter a special region and the SPDS together with the instruments (MOMA, Raman and MirOmega) are allowed to search for extinct and extant life in the sample.

So ExoMars is allowed to drill into a special region but not allowed to land in one or to drive into one.