The European Space Agency has unveiled a small ‘sphere’ that they hope will be utilised in a future mission to collect samples from the Martian surface. The container weighs less than 5 kg and has a diameter of only 23 cm. It has 11 separate storage receptacles, and will keep the samples at a temperature of -10 °C during the return journey on Earth. It will then experience a high speed re-entry.
Benoit Laine of the ESA explains “this challenging project drew on the expertise of multiple ESA specialists. It incorporates mechanical systems covering structural, thermal and mechanisms engineering but also communications, antennas and power – it has of course to incorporate a highly reliable battery.”
Laine also emphasises one of the major challenges of such a project, explaining “because there is the potential, however remote, that the samples contain alien life, we have to comply with strict planetary protection protocols not to bring them into contact with Earth’s biosphere”. The sphere and its collected samples will therefore be contained in a ‘bio-sealed vessel’ before it enters Earth’s atmosphere.
Although the ESA predict the eventual mission will be an international effort, there are currently no confirmed plans for a sample mission to Mars.
Last week, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully tested a new ‘asteroid cannon’ that will operate as part of their Hayabusa 2 mission. As the name suggests, the project is the follow up to the Hayabusa mission which successfully returned to Earth with tiny samples of asteroidal material.
The newer probe will come equipped with an explosive ‘collision device’, which is intended to create a smaller crater on the asteroid in order to collect samples from deeper beneath the surface. These sample materials are intended to help scientists better understand the basic makeup of asteroids.
JAXA hopes to launch the second Hayabusa project either before or during December 2014, with alternate possible launch windows in 2015 if funding or other practical issues delay the mission to the (162173) 1999 JU3 asteroid.
