NASA is Sending More Helicopters to Mars to Help Bring Samples Back
Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:
'Amazing' performance of Mars helicopter means more will be sent to the red planet:
NASA's Perseverance rover collected its first samples from Mars a year ago and they will likely arrive on Earth in 2033 but without the help of Europe's sample-collecting Mars rovers.
[...] NASA says it's finished reviewing system requirements for its Mars Sample Return campaign, which now excludes ESA's Airbus-built Sample Fetch Rover and its associated second lander. This decision was made after a meeting between NASA and ESA officials about Mars sample returns earlier this month.
The vehicle to bring Mars samples back to Earth is the Earth Return Orbiter, which NASA plans to launch the in fall of 2027 followed by its Sample Retrieval Lander in summer 2028. NASA released a sketch of the Sample Retrieval Lander in April. The Mars samples are expected to arrive on Earth in 2033, NASA said in a press release.
The changed rover roster means Perseverance will be the main vehicle for bringing samples to the Sample Retrieval Lander.
The Sample Retrieval Lander will have two helicopters that collect samples. Their design is based on Ingenuity's helicopter, which has outlived its planned lifespan by a year. The new helicopters are a "secondary capability" for sample retrieval.
[...] ESA officials say they remain committed to the its Earth Return Orbiter.
"ESA is continuing at full speed the development of both the Earth Return Orbiter that will make the historic round-trip from Earth to Mars and back again; and the Sample Transfer Arm that will robotically place the sample tubes aboard the Orbiting Sample Container before its launch from the surface of the Red Planet," said David Parker, ESA director of Human and Robotic Exploration.
Perseverance as the primary way to deliver the samples? I'm curious what the ESA/NASA discussions have been for this.
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