NASA unveils its new roadmap for robotic exploration of Mars

The exploration of Mars is currently attracting growing interest, particularly with the development of the first sample return mission, as well as the forecast of a manned flight during the 2030s. At the same time, NASA also wishes to continue robotic exploration of Mars, recognizing the importance of these missions in deepening our understanding of the planet and its potential for life. Rovers, space probes and flying machines in theatmosphereatmosphere are essential not only for collecting data on the Martian surface and atmosphere, but also for studying geological and climatological phenomena in real time. Furthermore, the exploration roboticsrobotics helps reduce the risks associated with manned missions by testing technologies and strategies that could be used by astronauts in the future.

It is therefore in this exciting context for Mars that NASA has just released a report on its robotic exploration strategy, with an emphasis on smaller and more frequent missions, capable of answering these essential questions. This report, released December 11, outlines a roadmap for the next 20 years, advocating low-cost missions at every launch opportunity and encouraging commercial and international partnerships. It also recommends purchasing commercial data from the private sector, primarily communications and imaging services. However, one of the major challenges of trade missions is establishing a viable economic model. NASA will likely need to invest upfront through public-private partnerships to make these missions cost-effective and efficient.

Targeted and scientific missions

These upcoming small missions, with budgets between $100 million and $300 million, will focus on specific scientific questions. NASA plans to alternate these missions with less frequent but larger projects, close to a billion dollar budget. An example would be the lander concept Mars Life Explorerincluded in the decadal survey of planetary science. NASA could also collaborate with missions from other space agencies.

The NASA report is structured around three main themes: the search for Martian life, supporting human exploration, and the study of Mars as a dynamic planetary system.

Exploring the potential of Martian life

The search for evidence of life on Mars is at the heart of scientific concerns. The questions that arise are whether life has already emerged on the planet and, if so, whether it still exists. The proximity of human exploration still offers the opportunity to conduct studies in the original state of Mars, before any contaminationcontamination biological by astronauts.

Although previous missions have reported that Mars has habitable conditions, these findings remain localized to the specific regions and geological periods visited. Analyzing Martian geological history could reveal the extent of its habitability and the changes it has undergone over time. This includes searching for current habitable environments, potentially present in the ice-rich subsurface or elsewhere, and the ways in which habitable environments on Mars and Earth may have diverged.

Discoveries of ancient organic matter on Mars could also shed light on the evolution of organic chemistry prebioticprebioticthus drawing a parallel with theemergenceemergence of life on Earth. Unlike our Planet, which has lost all geological traces of the first millennia of its formation, due to the plate tectonicsplate tectonics and erosion by water, Mars retains valuable information about its past.

Scientists also consider it possible that several prebiotic and life-supporting scenarios took place on Mars. Discoveries related to climate and geological data will provide crucial clues to determine which of these evolutionary paths Mars followed. In short, these missions could not only broaden our understanding of the Red Planet, but also shed light on the origins of life in the Solar System.

Supporting human exploration of Mars

With human exploration of Mars expected to begin in the 2030s, NASA is preparing to use this human presence to intensify its scientific research.

With the arrival of the first manned missions, scientific laboratories and instruments will be brought to Mars, much more powerful and efficient than those on board robotic missions. They will be able to carry out studies in real time, whether in transittransitin orbitorbit or on the Martian surface, which will accelerate discoveries whatever the scientific theme studied.

This report issues a whole series of recommendations to support and prepare for human presence by identifying the needs to best size the infrastructure brought to Mars. The latter must meet the needs of these future explorers, particularly with regard to the use of resources. on sitecivil engineering and, in the long term, research in agricultural science and bio-productionpolymerspolymers for local manufacturing. In this context, the report underlines the need to continue systematic data collection on the Martian environment, its climateclimateits subsoil and potential hazards, such as dust, extreme weather and radiation.

Better understand Martian weather

One of the priorities of these precursor missions is the mapping of surface ice and up to a few meters below the surface. These data will be used for studies on Martian life, as well as the history of climate changeclimate change and geological on Mars. Finally, water ice, as a local resource, could be exploited for various applicationsapplications : thrusterthruster for the return to Earth, life support, materials for civil engineering (such as the manufacture of concreteconcrete or theimpression 3Dimpression 3D of structures), and even for theagricultureagriculture.

Furthermore, it is crucial to characterize candidate sites for human missions using high-speed imaging. resolutionresolution and predict atmospheric conditions that may affect key events, such as human crew landings or launch operations from the surface. Although Mars has been almost completely mapped at a resolution of five meters per pixelpixelhigher resolution is needed to identify potential hazards, such as rocks, and draw maps around landing sites.

It is also essential to better understand meteorological processes over regions targeted for manned missions. NASA therefore plans toto implementto implement missions aimed at carrying out vertical profiling of atmospheric temperatures and aerosolsaerosolsas well as acquiring missing data, such as those concerning winds. This information is crucial for improving atmospheric models, allowing meteorologymeteorology more reliable and an ability to assess the frequencyfrequency and the intensity of extreme climatic events, such as stormsstorms of dust.

As for the mission of Return of Martian samplesReturn of Martian samplesit will help characterize the potentially harmful effects of regolithregolith Mars to design mitigation approaches related to human health and protective equipment and infrastructure.

Mars: a dynamic planetary system

Finally, the third and final theme of this report, NASA aspires to collect as much information about Mars as we know about our own planet. Although Mars shares some geological similarities with Earth, its fundamental differences provide a unique opportunity to explore planetary evolution. While Mars retains evidence of its earliest conditions of existence, our knowledge of the diversity of its environment still remains limited.

Despite the extensive data acquired by past missions, NASA has only explored a fraction of the Martian surface. Understanding the processes that take place at finer scales is essential to understanding the complexity of Mars as a dynamic system.