Airbus Develops Landing Platform for European Mars Rover

The European aerospace corporation Airbus has been tasked with constructing the landing platform for the Mars rover named Rosalind Franklin. This initiative is part of the ExoMars program, and both the rover and the platform are being developed at the company's facility in Stevenage, UK.

According to Airbus, the landing platform is designed to ensure a safe descent onto the Martian surface following the rover's entry and descent through the planet's atmosphere, which includes a parachute-assisted braking phase. Key components of the platform will include a robust landing structure, a significant propulsion system for the final descent, and a landing gear that will provide stability upon touchdown. Additionally, two ramps located on opposite sides of the platform will facilitate the rover's transition onto the Martian terrain with minimal risk.

The primary mission of the Rosalind Franklin rover is to search for signs of past or present life on Mars. Notably, this rover is equipped to analyze samples from depths up to two meters below the surface, marking a significant advancement in Martian exploration capabilities.

The European Space Agency (ESA) plans to launch this mission in 2028, utilizing a launch vehicle supplied by NASA. The rover is expected to land on Mars in 2030. The overall mission is managed by Thales Alenia Space, a collaboration between the defense contractors Thales and Leonardo.

In preparation for the rover's launch, ESA, in collaboration with the European industry and NASA, is working on the maintenance and enhancement of the Rosalind Franklin rover. This preparation includes integrating heating systems to keep the rover operational in the harsh Martian environment, as well as developing a new software mode that will enable the rover to quickly enter an autonomous state after landing.

Landing on Mars presents unique challenges due to the planet's thin atmosphere. The Airbus platform must not only protect the rover from the intense heat experienced during entry but also effectively reduce its high velocity just before touchdown. According to ESA, the entire process from atmospheric entry to landing will take approximately six minutes. The ExoMars landing system is engineered to decelerate the rover from a speed of 45 meters per second at the end of the parachute descent to less than three meters per second using retro-rockets just before contact with the Martian surface.