The Martian Mission, Aurora
The years 2013 to 2035 were the space focus on May 15-16, 2007 in Athens, for the European Science Foundation led workshop that was sponsored by ESA, or the European Space Agency. Over 88 scientists from 11 European countries attended the workshop that was titled “Emergence and co-evolution of life with its planetary environments.” Three targets were identified in the workshop—Mars, Moon, and Near-Earth Objects—to be visited by international space missions in the designated time frame. The Near-Earth Objects refer to asteroids that are orbiting the Sun, close to the Earth.
Mars was qualified because of the possible existence of life in the past, making it an excellent choice to research life that used to be there, at the same time preparing for human colonization for future living. In fact, the purpose of the ESA program is to focus on the planetary bodies that are close enough to Earth to be reached by humans, even though robotics will be the first contact. Mars is the main focus of the exploratory missions called “Mars Sample Return.” These consist of a set of robotic missions whose main purpose will be to return to Earth pieces of Martian soil and sub-surface. That way a detailed analysis can be observed on Earth.
Known as an international cooperative mission, several initiatives need to be developed and improved upon with key technologies relevant to planetary explorations:
· Deep drilling techniques
· Radio-isotopic devices to produce energy on the Martian surface
· Development of a European facility for receiving and analyzing extraterrestrial samples
Another purpose of the mission is to strengthen all human research in space environments that are carried out on Earth or the International Space Station. An emphasis was put on the fact that international cooperation among space agencies that are engaged in planetary exploration not only should be a feature, but a main focus for Europe, the United States, Russia, Japan, China, India, and other space involved countries. Also, it was agreed that the Moon should be used as a component of the program.
The mission was originally known as Aurora, or the Aurora Exploration Program. Considered to be part of Europe’s strategy for space, it was endorsed by the European Union Council of Research and the ESA Council in 2001. Its purpose was to explore the solar system and Universe, stimulate new technology, and inspire young Europeans in science and technology.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 30th, 2007 at 7:08 am and is filed under Public Relations, Space Agency News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
