Science: The Potential Game-Changing Mission for Our Knowledge of Mars

The ExoMars program is a joint project between the European Space Agency (ESA) and Russia’s space agency tasked with exploring Mars. The decision by ESA to suspend ties with Russia’s space agency due to the invasion of Ukraine led to a delay in the launch of Europe’s first Mars rover. Jorge Vago, a planetary physicist and head of the science team, described the situation as “grieving” for his team who had been working on the project for almost two decades.

After considering various options, European research ministers in November pledged 360 million euros to cover the costs of the mission, including replacing Russian components. When it finally launches in 2028, the Rosalind Franklin rover will carry an advanced mass spectrometer to detect any carbon-containing material underneath Mars’s surface, answering the most pressing question about the planet concerning any possible evidence of past or present life.

Scientists have searched for life in many ways, but the next-generation mass spectrometer on the Rosalind Franklin rover will enable them to look for molecular patterns that didn’t form in the absence of living biology. The mass spectrometer, called Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer (MOMA), will vaporize molecules by ionizing them and manipulating them with electric fields to move through the instrument. It’s also capable of sorting ions by a measurement related to molecular weight and recording their relative abundance.

One of MOMA’s benefits would be to hunt for patterns of life, which allows researchers to look for life beyond what we know on Earth. For instance, scientists will sift through molecules in search of lipids and amino acids, which contain building blocks of cell membranes and proteins, respectively. Both lipids and amino acids have a preponderance of even numbers of carbon atoms in

 

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Denial of responsibility! Samachar Central is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.