Beagle 2 Leaves the UK to Join Mars Express
Posted on: Friday, 28 February 2003, 06:00 CST
The Beagle 2 project is the British led effort to land on Mars as part of the European Space Agency's Mars Express Mission to be launched in June 2003.
British National Space Centre -- Lord Sainsbury praises UK role in voyage to look for signs of life on Mars Science Minister Lord Sainsbury today praised UK scientists and industry for their role in the successful completion of work on the Beagle 2 probe to Mars. The lander is today en route to Astrium, in Toulouse, France, where it will be fitted to the Mars Express orbiter.
The European Space Agency (ESA) spacecraft will then be taken to Baikonur, in Kazakhstan, where it will blast-off on a Soyuz-Fregat launcher this summer on a sixmonth voyage to the Red Planet.
Lord Sainsbury said:
"The successful completion of Beagle 2 is a tribute to the vision of the UK science community, the technical know-how of engineers from British industry and the faith of our European partners."
"“This is an important milestone in the history of the development of the Beagle 2 lander. With it, the UK is playing a major role in the European Space Agency’s mission to Mars. Today marks the beginning of the next phase in this exciting project."
Beagle 2 is designed to look for signs of life on Mars. It will be ejected from the orbiter and parachute down to the surface of the planet.
On touchdown, it will deploy its robotic arm and paw which includes a mole to burrow into the ground and collect soil samples. These will be analysed for signs of past and present biological activity using the innovative Gas Analysis Package (GAP) developed by Professor Colin Pillinger’s team at the Open University.
The lander is also packing a suite of instruments that will measure the weather, including temperature, pressure and wind.
The Beagle 2 project is headed by the Open University, which has provided the science lead, and Astrium, which is the prime industrial contractor. It involves a consortium of academic institutions and industrial subcontractors, and is funded by a unique public/private partnership.
The Mars Express spacecraft, part of ESA’s Horizons 2000 programme, is designed to take a payload of seven state-of-the-art scientific instruments to orbit Mars as well as the Beagle 2 lander.
The orbiter instruments will record data for at least one Martian year, or 687 Earth days; Beagle 2 is designed to work for 180 Earth days. The satellite will also carry a data relay system for communicating with Earth, including the transfer of command and science data to and from Beagle 2.
Beagle 2 and Mars Express will undergo final tests at Toulouse. It is expected that the spacecraft will then be sent to Baikonur next month.
---
On the Net:
More science, space, and technology from RedNova
Related Articles
- Space Sciences lab celebrates 50 Years and 75 satellites
- Pete Conrad Spirit of Innovation Award to Engage Students in Space, Science &Amp; Technology
- PLATO(R) Earth and Space Science Wins 5th Award Earning the 2006 Technology and Learning Award of Excellence
- Challenger Center for Space Science Education to Launch New Program With $150,000 Toyota USA Foundation Award
- Recent Earth and Space Science PhDs Finding Employment
- Most New Graduates in Earth and Space Sciences Find Satisfying Work in Their Field
- Chabot Space & Science Center Celebrates Astronomy Day on Saturday, April 24 With Activites, Opening of New Exhibit One Giant Leap: A Moon Odyssey
- Europe Stops Looking for Beagle 2 Mars Lander
- Beagle 2 Mars Lander Still Not Located
- Party Like a Martian at Chabot Space & Science Center's Mars Mania Costume Party August 26
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds