Exploration of Mars

The exploration of Mars has taken place over hundreds of years, beginning in ear nest with the invention and development of the telescope during the 1600s. Incre asingly detailed views of the planet from Earth inspired speculation about its e nvironment and possible life even intelligent civilizations that might be found there. Probes sent from Earth beginning in the late 20th century have yielded a dramatic increase in knowledge about the Martian system, focused primarily on un derstanding its geology and habitability potential. Engineering interplanetary journeys is very complicated, so the exploration of M ars has experienced a high failure rate, especially in earlier attempts. Roughly two-thirds of all spacecraft destined for Mars failed before completing their m issions, and there are some that failed before their observations could begin. H owever, missions have also met with unexpected levels of success, such as the tw in Mars Exploration Rovers operating for years beyond their original mission spe cifications. As of 24 september 2014, there are two scientific rovers on the surface of Mars beaming signals back to Earth (Opportunity of the Mars Exploration Rover mission , and Curiosity of the Mars Science Laboratory mission), and five orbiters curre ntly surveying the planet: Mars Odyssey, Mars Express, Mars Reconnaissance Orbit er, Mars Orbiter Mission and MAVEN. To date, no sample return missions have been attempted for Mars, and one attempt ed return mission for Mars' moon Phobos (Fobos-Grunt) has failed. On 24 January 2014, NASA reported that current studies on the planet Mars by the Curiosity and Opportunity rovers will now be searching for evidence of ancient life, including a biosphere based on autotrophic, chemotrophic and/or chemolitho autotrophic microorganisms, as well as ancient water, including fluvio-lacustrin e environments (plains related to ancient rivers or lakes) that may have been ha bitable.[1][2][3][4] The search for evidence of habitability, taphonomy (related to fossils), and organic carbon on the planet Mars is now a primary NASA object ive.[1] Contents [hide] 1 Recent missions 2 Martian system 3 Launch windows 4 Image map of Mars landings 5 Overview 5.1 Early Soviet missions 5.1.1 1960s 5.1.2 1970s 5.2 Mariner program 5.3 Viking program 5.4 Mars Pathfinder 5.5 Mars Global Surveyor 5.6 Odyssey and Express 5.7 MER and Phoenix 5.8 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter 5.9 Rosetta and Dawn swingbys 5.10 Fobos-Grunt 5.11 Curiosity rover 5.12 MAVEN 5.13 Mars Orbiter Mission 6 Future missions 7 Past missions 8 Manned mission proposals 8.1 ESA 8.2 NASA

8.3 Zubrin 9 Probing difficulties 10 Timeline of Mars exploration 10.1 Totals 10.2 Timeline 10.3 Future missions 10.3.1 Under study 10.4 Undeveloped concepts 11 See also 12 References 13 Further reading 14 External links Recent missions[edit] Curiosity's self-portrait on the planet Mars at "Rocknest" (October 31, 2012). NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter entered Mars orbit in 2001.[5] Odyssey's Gamma Ray S pectrometer detected significant amounts of hydrogen in the upper metre or so of regolith on Mars. This hydrogen is thought to be contained in large deposits of water ice.[6] The Mars Express mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) reached Mars in 2003 . It carried the Beagle 2 lander, which was not heard from after being released and was declared lost in February 2004.[7] In early 2004 the Mars Express Planet ary Fourier Spectrometer team announced the orbiter had detected methane in the Martian atmosphere. ESA announced in June 2006 the discovery of aurorae on Mars. [8] In January 2004, the NASA twin Mars Exploration Rovers named Spirit (MER-A) and Opportunity (MER-B) landed on the surface of Mars. Both have met or exceeded all their targets. Among the most significant scientific returns has been conclusiv e evidence that liquid water existed at some time in the past at both landing si tes. Martian dust devils and windstorms have occasionally cleaned both rovers' s olar panels, and thus increased their lifespan.[9] Spirit Rover (MER-A) was acti ve until 2010, when it stopped sending data. On March 10, 2006, the NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) probe arrived in o rbit to conduct a two-year science survey. The orbiter began mapping the Martian terrain and weather to find suitable landing sites for upcoming lander missions . The MRO snapped the first image of a series of active avalanches near the plan et's north pole, scientists said March 3, 2008.[10] The Mars Science Laboratory mission was launched on November 26, 2011 and it del ivered the Curiosity rover, on the surface of Mars on August 6, 2012 UTC. It is larger and more advanced than the Mars Exploration Rovers, with a velocity of up to 90 meters per hour (295 feet per hour).[11] Experiments include a laser chem ical sampler that can deduce the make-up of rocks at a distance of 7 meters.[12] The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched its Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) on November 5, 2013. It was successfully inserted into Mars orbit on 24 Se ptember 2014. India's ISRO is the fourth space agency to reach Mars, after the S oviet space program, NASA and ESA.[13] Martian system[edit] Main articles: Mars, Atmosphere of Mars and Moons of Mars File:Mars Landing Sites.ogv The landing site of each Mars mission can be seen on this rotating globe. Mars has long been the subject of human fascination. Early telescopic observatio ns revealed color changes on the surface that were originally attributed to seas onal vegetation as well as apparent linear features that were ascribed to intell igent design. These early and erroneous interpretations led to widespread public

interest in Mars. Further telescopic observations found Mars' two moons, Phobos and Deimos, the polar ice caps, and the feature now known as Olympus Mons, the solar system's tallest mountain.[14] These discoveries piqued further interest i n the study and exploration of the red planet. Mars is a rocky planet, like Eart h, that formed around the same time, yet with only half the diameter of Earth, a nd a far thinner atmosphere, it has a cold and desert-like surface. It is notabl e, however, that although the planet has only one quarter of the surface area of the Earth, it has about the same land area, since only one quarter of the surfa ce area of the Earth is land. Launch windows[edit] Opportunities 2013-2020[15] Year Launch Spacecraft (Launched or Planned) 2013 Nov 2013 MAVEN, Mars Orbiter Mission 2016 Jan 2016 Apr 2016 InSight, ExoMars 2018 Apr 2018 May 2018 ExoMars, Inspiration Mars? 2020 Jul 2020 Sep 2020 Mars 2020 Rover The minimum-energy launch windows for a Martian expedition occur at intervals of approximately two years and two months, i.e. 780 days (the planet's synodic per iod with respect to Earth).[16] In addition, the lowest available transfer energ y varies on a roughly 16-year cycle.[16] For example, there was a minimum in the 1969 and 1971 launch windows, rising to a peak in the late 1970s, and hitting a nother low in 1986 and 1988.[16] Image map of Mars landings[edit] The following imagemap of the planet Mars has embedded links to geographical fea tures in addition to the noted Rover and Lander locations. Click on the features and you will be taken to the corresponding article pages. North is at the top; Elevations: red (higher), yellow (zero), blue (lower). Map of Mars About this image Spirit (2004) > Spirit Opportunity (2004) > Opportunity Pathfinder < Pathfinder/Sojourner (1997) Viking 1 (1976) > Viking 1 Viking 2 (1976) > Viking 2 Phoenix < Phoenix (2008) Mars 3 < Mars 3 (1971) Curiosity (2012) > Curiosity Overview[edit] The following entails a brief overview of Mars exploration, oriented towards orb iters and flybys; see also Mars landing. Early Soviet missions[edit] Main articles: Mars 1M, Mars 1 and Mars probe program Mars 1M spacecraft 1960s[edit] The Mars 1M programs (sometimes dubbed Marsnik in Western media) was the first S oviet unmanned spacecraft interplanetary exploration program, which consisted of two flyby probes launched towards Mars in October 1960, Mars 1960A and Mars 196

0B (also known as Korabl 4 and Korabl 5 respectively). After launch, the third s tage pumps on both launchers were unable to develop enough thrust to commence ig nition, so Earth parking orbit was not achieved. The spacecraft reached an altit ude of 120 km before reentry. Mars 1962A was a Mars fly-by mission, launched on October 24, 1962 and Mars 1962 B a lander mission, launched in late December of the same year (1962). Both fail ed from either breaking up as they were going into Earth orbit or having the upp er stage explode in orbit during the burn to put the spacecraft into trans-Mars trajectory. Mars 1 (1962 Beta Nu 1), an automatic interplanetary spacecraft launched to Mars on November 1, 1962, was the first probe of the Soviet Mars probe program. Mars 1 was intended to fly by the planet at a distance of about 11,000 km and take i mages of the surface as well as send back data on cosmic radiation, micrometeoro id impacts and Mars' magnetic field, radiation environment, atmospheric structur e, and possible organic compounds.[17][18] Sixty-one radio transmissions were he ld, initially at two-day intervals and later at 5 day intervals, from which a la rge amount of interplanetary data was collected. On 21 March 1963, when the spac ecraft was at a distance of 106,760,000 km from Earth, on its way to Mars, commu nications ceased due to failure of its antenna orientation system.[17][18] In 1964, both Soviet probe launches, of Zond 1964A on June 4, and Zond 2 on Nove mber 30, (part of the Zond program), resulted in failures. Zond 1964A had a fail ure at launch, while communication was lost with Zond 2 en route to Mars after a mid-course maneuver, in early May 1965. In 1969, and as part of the Mars probe program, the Soviet Union prepared two id entical 5-ton orbiters called M-69, dubbed by NASA as Mars 1969A and Mars 1969B. Both probes were lost in launch-related complications with the newly developed Proton rocket.[19] 1970s[edit] The USSR intended to have the first artificial satellite of Mars beating the pla nned American Mariner 8 and Mariner 9 Martian orbiters. In May 1971, one day aft er Mariner 8 malfunctioned at launch and failed to reach orbit, Cosmos 419 (Mars 1971C), a heavy probe of the Soviet Mars program M-71, also failed to launch. T his spacecraft was designed as an orbiter only, while the next two probes of pro ject M-71, Mars 2 and Mars 3, were multipurpose combinations of an orbiter and a lander. They were successfully launched in mid-May 1971 and reached Mars about seven months later. On November 27, 1971 the lander of Mars 2 crash-landed due t o an on-board computer malfunction and became the first man-made object to reach the surface of Mars. In December 2, 1971 the Mars 3 lander became the first spa cecraft to achieve a soft landing, but its transmission was interrupted after 14 .5 seconds. The Mars 2 and 3 orbiters sent back a relatively large volume of data covering t he period from December 1971 to March 1972, although transmissions continued thr ough to August. By 22 August 1972, after sending back data and a total of 60 pic tures, Mars 2 and 3 concluded their missions. The images and data enabled creati on of surface relief maps, and gave information on the Martian gravity and magne tic fields.[20] In 1973, the Soviet Union sent four more probes to Mars: the Mars 4 and Mars 5 o rbiters and the Mars 6 and Mars 7 fly-by/lander combinations. All missions excep t Mars 7 sent back data, with Mars 5 being most successful. Mars 5 transmitted 6 0 images before a loss of pressurization in the transmitter housing ended the mi ssion. Mars 6 lander transmitted data during descent, but failed upon impact. Ma rs 4 flew by the planet at a range of 2200 km returning one swath of pictures an d radio occultation data, which constituted the first detection of the nightside

ionosphere on Mars.[21] Mars 7 probe separated prematurely from the carrying ve hicle due to a problem in the operation of one of the onboard systems (attitude control or retro-rockets) and missed the planet by 1300 km. Mariner program[edit] Main articles: Mariner program, Mariner 4, Mariner 6 and 7 and Mariner 9 The first close-up images taken of Mars in 1965 from Mariner 4 show an area abou t 330 km across by 1200 km from limb to bottom of frame. In 1964, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory made two attempts at reaching Mars. Ma riner 3 and Mariner 4 were identical spacecraft designed to carry out the first flybys of Mars. Mariner 3 was launched on November 5, 1964, but the shroud encas ing the spacecraft atop its rocket failed to open properly, dooming the mission. Three weeks later, on November 28, 1964, Mariner 4 was launched successfully on a 7½-month voyage to the red planet. Mariner 4 flew past Mars on July 14, 1965, providing the first close-up photogra phs of another planet. The pictures, gradually played back to Earth from a small tape recorder on the probe, showed impact craters. It provided radically more a ccurate data about the planet; a surface atmospheric pressure of about 1% of Ear th's and daytime temperatures of -100 °C (-148 °F) were estimated. No magnetic field [22][23] or Martian radiation belts[24] were detected. The new data meant redesi gns for then planned Martian landers, and showed life would have a more difficul t time surviving there than previously anticipated.[25][26][27][28] Mariner Crater, as seen by Mariner 4. The location is Phaethontis quadrangle. NASA continued the Mariner program with another pair of Mars flyby probes, Marin er 6 and 7. They were sent at the next launch window, and reached the planet in 1969. During the following launch window the Mariner program again suffered the loss of one of a pair of probes. Mariner 9 successfully entered orbit about Mars , the first spacecraft ever to do so, after the launch time failure of its siste r ship, Mariner 8. When Mariner 9 reached Mars in 1971, it and two Soviet orbite rs (Mars 2 and Mars 3, see Mars probe program below) found that a planet-wide du st storm was in progress. The mission controllers used the time spent waiting fo r the storm to clear to have the probe rendezvous with, and photograph, Phobos. When the storm cleared sufficiently for Mars' surface to be photographed by Mari ner 9, the pictures returned represented a substantial advance over previous mis sions. These pictures were the first to offer more detailed evidence that liquid water might at one time have flowed on the planetary surface. They also finally discerned the true nature of many Martian albedo features. For example, Nix Oly mpica was one of only a few features that could be seen during the planetary dus tstorm, revealing it to be the highest mountain (volcano, to be exact) on any pl anet in the entire Solar System, and leading to its reclassification as Olympus Mons. Viking program[edit] Main articles: Viking program, Viking 1, Viking 2 and Viking spacecraft biologic al experiments The Viking program launched Viking 1 and 2 spacecraft to Mars in 1975; The progr am consisted of two orbiters and two landers these were the first two spacecraft to successfully land and operate on Mars. Viking 1 lander site (February 11, 1978). Viking 1 lander site (1st color, July 21, 1976). Viking 2 lander site (1st color, September 5, 1976).

Viking 2 lander site (September 25, 1977). Frost at Viking 2 site (May 18, 1979). Martian sunset over Chryse Planitia at Viking 1 site (August 20, 1976). The primary scientific objectives of the lander mission were to search for biosi gnatures and observe meteorologic, seismic and magnetic properties of Mars. The results of the biological experiments on board the Viking landers remain inconcl usive, with a reanalysis of the Viking data published in 2012 suggesting signs o f microbial life on Mars.[29][30] Flood erosion at Dromore crater. Tear-drop shaped islands at Oxia Palus. Streamlined islands in Lunae Palus. Scour patterns located in Lunae Palus. The Viking orbiters revealed that large floods of water carved deep valleys, ero ded grooves into bedrock, and traveled thousands of kilometers. Areas of branche d streams, in the southern hemisphere, suggest that rain once fell.[31][32][33] Mars Pathfinder[edit] Sojourner takes Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer measurements of the Yogi Rock. Main articles: Mars Pathfinder and Mars landing Mars Pathfinder was a U.S. spacecraft that landed a base station with a roving p robe on Mars on July 4, 1997. It consisted of a lander and a small 10.6 kilogram s (23 lb) wheeled robotic rover named Sojourner, which was the first rover to op erate on the surface of Mars.[34][35] In addition to scientific objectives, the Mars Pathfinder mission was also a "proof-of-concept" for various technologies, such as an airbag landing system and automated obstacle avoidance, both later ex ploited by the Mars Exploration Rovers. Mars Global Surveyor[edit] Main article: Mars Global Surveyor This image from Mars Global Surveyor spans a region about 1500 meters across. Gu llies, similar to those formed on Earth, are visible from Newton Basin in Sirenu m Terra. Gullies, similar to those formed on Earth, are visible on this image from Mars G lobal Surveyor. After the 1992 failure of NASA's Mars Observer orbiter, NASA retooled and launch ed Mars Global Surveyor (MGS). This mission was the first successful United Stat es mission, and the first fully successful mission overall, to the red planet in two decades when it launched November 7, 1996, and entered orbit on September 1 2, 1997. After a year and a half trimming its orbit from a looping ellipse to a circular track around the planet, the spacecraft began its primary mapping missi on in March 1999. It observed the planet from a low-altitude, nearly polar orbit over the course of one complete Martian year, the equivalent of nearly two Eart h years. Mars Global Surveyor completed its primary mission on January 31, 2001, and completed several extended mission phases. The mission studied the entire Martian surface, atmosphere, and interior, and re turned more data about the red planet than all previous Mars missions combined. The data has been archived and remains available publicly.[36] This color-coded elevation map was produced from data collected by Mars Global S urveyor.It shows an area around Northern Kasei Valles, showing relationships amo ng Kasei Valles, Bahram Vallis, Vedra Vallis, Maumee Vallis, and Maja Valles. Ma

p location is in Lunae Palus quadrangle and includes parts of Lunae Planum and C hryse Planitia. A color-coded elevation map produced from data collected by Mars Global Surveyor indicating the result of floods on Mars. Among key scientific findings, Global Surveyor took pictures of gullies and debr is flow features that suggest there may be current sources of liquid water, simi lar to an aquifer, at or near the surface of the planet. Similar channels on Ear th are formed by flowing water, but on Mars the temperature is normally too cold and the atmosphere too thin to sustain liquid water. Nevertheless, many scienti sts hypothesize that liquid groundwater can sometimes surface on Mars, erode gul lies and channels, and pool at the bottom before freezing and evaporating. Magnetometer readings showed that the planet's magnetic field is not globally ge nerated in the planet's core, but is localized in particular areas of the crust. New temperature data and closeup images of the Martian moon Phobos showed that its surface is composed of powdery material at least 1 metre (3 feet) thick, cau sed by millions of years of meteoroid impacts. Data from the spacecraft's laser altimeter gave scientists their first 3-D views of Mars' north polar ice cap. On November 5, 2006 MGS lost contact with Earth.[37] NASA ended efforts to resto re communication on January 28, 2007.[38] Odyssey and Express[edit] Main articles: 2001 Mars Odyssey and Mars Express In 2001 NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter arrived at Mars. Its mission is to use spect rometers and imagers to hunt for evidence of past or present water and volcanic activity on Mars. In 2002, it was announced that the probe's gamma ray spectrome ter and neutron spectrometer had detected large amounts of hydrogen, indicating that there are vast deposits of water ice in the upper three meters of Mars' soi l within 60° latitude of the south pole.[citation needed] On June 2, 2003, the European Space Agency's Mars Express set off from Baikonur Cosmodrome to Mars. The Mars Express craft consists of the Mars Express Orbiter and the lander Beagle 2. Although the landing probe was not designed to move, it carried a digging device and the smallest mass spectrometer created to date, as well as a range of other devices, on a robotic arm in order to accurately analy ze soil beneath the dusty surface. The orbiter entered Mars orbit on December 25, 2003, and Beagle 2 entered Mars' atmosphere the same day. However, attempts to contact the lander failed. Communi cations attempts continued throughout January, but Beagle 2 was declared lost in mid-February, and a joint inquiry was launched by the UK and ESA. The Mars Expr ess Orbiter confirmed the presence of water ice and carbon dioxide ice at the pl anet's south pole, while NASA had previously confirmed their presence at the nor th pole of Mars. MER and Phoenix[edit] Main articles: Mars Exploration Rover, Opportunity rover, Spirit rover and Phoen ix lander See also: Mars landing Arctic surface as seen by Phoenix NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission (MER) is an ongoing robotic space mission involving two rovers, Spirit (1) and Opportunity, (2) exploring the planet Mars. It began in 2003 with the sending of the two rovers MER-A Spirit and MER-B Opport unity to explore the Martian surface and geology. The mission's scientific objective was to search for and characterize a wide ran ge of rocks and soils that hold clues to past water activity on Mars. The missio n is part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program, which includes three previous succ

essful landers: the two Viking program landers in 1976 and Mars Pathfinder probe in 1997 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter[edit] Main article: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is a multipurpose spacecraft designed to conduct rec onnaissance and exploration of Mars from orbit. The $720 million USD spacecraft was built by Lockheed Martin under the supervision of the Jet Propulsion Laborat ory, launched August 12, 2005, and attained Martian orbit on March 10, 2006. The MRO contains a host of scientific instruments such as the HiRISE camera, CTX camera, CRISM, and SHARAD. The HiRISE camera is used to analyze Martian landfor ms, whereas CRISM and SHARAD can detect water, ice, and minerals on and below th e surface. Additionally, MRO is paving the way for upcoming generations of space craft through daily monitoring of Martian weather and surface conditions, search ing for future landing sites, and testing a new telecommunications system that e nable it to send and receive information at an unprecedented bitrate, compared t o previous Mars spacecraft. Data transfer to and from the spacecraft occurs fast er than all previous interplanetary missions combined and allows it to serve as an important relay satellite for other missions. Rosetta and Dawn swingbys[edit] Main articles: Rosetta (spacecraft) and Dawn Mission The ESA Rosetta space probe mission to the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko flew within 250 km of Mars on February 25, 2007 in a gravitational slingshot designed to slow and redirect the spacecraft.[39] The NASA Dawn spacecraft also used the gravity of Mars to change direction and velocity, and did a little science in c onjunction with the many probes already there.[citation needed] Dawn passed the red planet in February 2009. Fobos-Grunt[edit] Main article: Fobos-Grunt In November 8, 2011, Russia's Roscosmos launched an ambitious mission called Fob os-Grunt. It was a lander aimed to retrieve a sample back to Earth from Mars' mo on Phobos, and place the Chinese Yinghuo-1 probe in Mars' orbit. The Fobos-Grunt mission suffered a complete control and communications failure shortly after la unch and was left stranded in low Earth orbit, later falling back to Earth.[40] The Yinghuo-1 satellite and Fobos-Grunt underwent destructive re-entry on Januar y 15, 2012, finally disintegrating over the Pacific Ocean.[41][42][43] Curiosity rover[edit] Main articles: Mars Science Laboratory, Curiosity rover and Timeline of Mars Sci ence Laboratory Curiosity's view of Aeolis Mons ("Mount Sharp") foothills on August 9, 2012 EDT (white balanced image). The NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission with its rover named Curiosity, was lau nched on November 26, 2011.[44][45] The rover carries instruments designed to lo ok for past or present conditions relevant to the past or present habitability o f Mars. The Curiosity rover landed on Mars on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater, betwe en Peace Vallis and Aeolis Mons (informally known as Mount Sharp),[46][47][48][4 9] on August 6, 2012 at 05:14:39 UTC.[50] The coordinates of the landing site (n amed "Bradbury Landing") are: (4.5895°S 137.4417°E)[51][52] MAVEN[edit] NASA's MAVEN is an orbiter mission to study the atmosphere of Mars.[53] It will also serve as a communications relay satellite for robotic landers and rovers on the surface Mars. MAVEN was launched 18 November 2013 and reached Mars on 22 Se ptember 2014.

Mars Orbiter Mission[edit] The Mars Orbiter Mission, also called Mangalyaan, was launched on 5 November 201 3 by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).[54] It was successfully inse rted into Martian orbit on 24 September 2014. The mission is a technology demons trator, and as secondary objective, it will also study the Martian atmosphere. T his is India's first mission to Mars, and with it, ISRO became the fourth space agency to successfully reach Mars after the Soviet Union, NASA (USA) and ESA (Eu rope). It also made India the first country in to reach Mars orbit on its first attempt.[13] Future missions[edit] In August 2012, NASA selected InSight, a $425 million lander mission for 2016, w ith a drill and seismometer to determine the interior structure of Mars.[55][56] [57] As part of the ExoMars program, ESA and the Russian Federal Space Agency plan to send the Trace Gas Orbiter and the Schiaparelli lander to Mars in 2016, and the ExoMars rover in 2018 to search for past or present microscopic life on Mars.[5 8] The Finnish-Russian MetNet concept would, if implemented in 2015, use multiple s mall meteorological stations on Mars to establish a widespread observation netwo rk to investigate the planet's atmospheric structure, physics and meteorology.[5 9] The MetNet precursor or demonstrator was considered for a piggyback launch on Phobos-Grunt,[60] and on the planned 2016 and 2018 ExoMars landers.[59] The Mars-Grunt is a Russian mission concept to bring a sample of Martian soil to Earth.[61] The ISRO plans to send a follow up mission to its Mars Orbiter Mission in the 20 17-2020 timeframe. [62] A ESA-NASA team produced a three-launch architecture concept for a Mars sample r eturn, which uses a rover to cache small samples, a Mars ascent stage to send it into orbit, and an orbiter to rendezvous with it above Mars and take it to Eart h.[63] Solar-electric propulsion could allow a one launch sample return instead of three.[64] The Mars Scout Program's SCIM would involve a probe grazing the upper atmosphere of Mars to scoop up dust and air for Earth return.[65] The Mars 2020 rover mission by NASA would be launched in 2020, and it would be b ased on the Mars Science Laboratory architecture. The scientific payload will be focused on astrobiology.[66] The United Arab Emirates announced that the first mission of its space agency wi ll be to send an unmanned mission to Mars by 2021.[67] Other future mission concepts include new polar probes, Martian aircraft and a n etwork of small meteorological stations.[63] Longterm areas of study may include Martian lava tubes, resource utilization, and electronic charge carriers in roc ks.[68][69] Micromissions are another possibility, such as piggybacking a small spacecraft on an Ariane 5 rocket and using a lunar gravity assist to get to Mars .[70] Past missions[edit] Launches to Mars Decade 1960s 13 1970s 11 1980s 2 1990s 8 2000s 8 2010s

4 Martian sunset by Spirit rover, 2005 North polar view by Phoenix lander, 2008 Starting in 1960 the Soviets launched a series of probes to Mars.[71] The first successful fly-by of Mars was on July 14 15, 1965, by NASA's Mariner 4.[72] On Nov ember 14, 1971 Mariner 9 became the first space probe to orbit another planet wh en it entered into orbit around Mars.[73] The amount of data returned by probes increased dramatically as technology improved.[71] The first to contact the surface were two Soviet probes: Mars 2 lander on Novemb er 27 and Mars 3 lander on December 2, 1971 Mars 2 failed during descent and Mars 3 about twenty seconds after landing.[74] Mars 6 failed during descent but did r eturn some corrupted atmospheric data in 1974. [75] The 1975 NASA launches of th e Viking program consisted of two orbiters, each with a lander that successfully touched down in 1976. Viking 1 remained operational for six years, Viking 2 for three. The Viking landers relayed the first color panoramas of Mars[76] and the Viking orbiters mapped the surface so well that the images remain in use. The Soviet probes Phobos 1 and 2 were sent to Mars in 1988 to study Mars and its two moons, with a focus on Phobos. Phobos 1 lost contact on the way to Mars. Ph obos 2, while successfully photographing Mars and Phobos, failed before it was s et to release two landers to the surface of Phobos.[77] Roughly two-thirds of all spacecraft destined for Mars have failed without compl eting their missions, and it has a reputation as difficult space exploration tar get.[78] Missions that ended prematurely after Phobos 1 & 2 (1988) include Mars Observer (Launched in 1992), Mars 96 (1996), Mars Climate Orbiter (1999), Mars P olar Lander with Deep Space 2 (1999), Nozomi (2003), Beagle 2 (2003), and FobosGrunt with Yinghuo-1 (2011). (See Probing difficulties section) Following the 1993 failure of the Mars Observer orbiter, the NASA Mars Global Su rveyor achieved Mars orbit in 1997. This mission was a complete success, having finished its primary mapping mission in early 2001. Contact was lost with the pr obe in November 2006 during its third extended program, spending exactly 10 oper ational years in space. The NASA Mars Pathfinder, carrying a robotic exploration vehicle Sojourner, landed in the Ares Vallis on Mars in the summer of 1997, ret urning many images.[79] Phoenix landed on the north polar region of Mars on May 25, 2008.[80] Its roboti c arm dug into the Martian soil and the presence of water ice was confirmed on J une 20, 2008.[81][82] The mission concluded on November 10, 2008 after contact w as lost.[83] In 2008, the price of transporting material from the surface of Ear th to the surface of Mars was approximately US$309,000 per kilogram.[84] Rosetta came within 250 km of Mars during its 2007 flyby. [85] Dawn flew by Mars in February 2009 for a gravity assist on its way to investigate Vesta and Ceres . [86] Manned mission proposals[edit] Concept for NASA Design Reference Mission Architecture 5.0 (2009) Main article: Manned mission to Mars Many people have long advocated a manned mission to Mars as the next logical ste p for a manned space program after lunar exploration. Aside from the prestige su ch a mission would bring, advocates argue that humans would easily be able to ou tperform robotic explorers, justifying the expense. Aerospace engineer Bob Zubri n is one of the proponents of such missions. Some critics contend unmanned robot s can perform better than humans at a fraction of the expense. If life exists on

Mars, a manned mission could contaminate it by introducing earthly microbes, so robotic exploration would be preferable.[87] A list of hypothetical or proposed manned Mars missions is located at manned mission to Mars. See also, colonizati on of Mars. ESA[edit] The ESA has plans to land humans on Mars between 2030 and 2035.[88] This will be preceded by successively larger probes, starting with the launch of the ExoMars probe[88] and a planned joint NASA ESA Mars sample return mission.[89] NASA[edit] Manned exploration by the United States was identified as a long-term goal in th e Vision for Space Exploration announced in 2004 by then US President George W. Bush.[90] The planned Orion spacecraft would be used to send a human expedition to Earth's moon by 2020 as a stepping stone to a Mars expedition. On September 2 8, 2007, NASA administrator Michael D. Griffin stated that NASA aims to put a pe rson on Mars by 2037.[91] Zubrin[edit] Mars Direct, a low-cost human mission proposed by Robert Zubrin, founder of the Mars Society, would use heavy-lift Saturn V class rockets, such as the SpaceX Fa lcon X, or, the Ares V, to skip orbital construction, LEO rendezvous, and lunar fuel depots. A modified proposal, called "Mars to Stay", involves not returning the first immigrant explorers immediately, if ever (see Colonization of Mars).[9 0][91][92][92] [93] Probing difficulties[edit] Deep Space 2 technology Further information: Phobos 1, Mars Observer, Mars 96, Nozomi (probe), Mars Clim ate Orbiter, Mars Polar Lander, Deep Space 2 and Beagle 2 The challenge, complexity and length of Mars missions make it likely that failur es can occur.[94] The high failure rate of missions launched from Earth attempti ng to explore Mars was informally called the "Mars Curse" or "Martian Curse".[95 ] The phrase "Galactic Ghoul"[96] or "Great Galactic Ghoul", referring to a fict itious space monster that subsists on a diet of Mars probes, was coined in 1997 by Time Magazine journalist Donald Neff, and is sometimes facetiously used to "e xplain" the recurring difficulties.[97][98][99][100] Two Soviet probes were sent to Mars in 1988 as part of the Phobos program. Phobo s 1 operated normally until an expected communications session on 2 September 19 88 failed to occur. The problem was traced to a software error, which deactivate d attitude thrusters causing the spacecrafts' solar arrays to no longer point at the Sun, depleting Phobos 1 batteries. Phobos 2 operated normally throughout it s cruise and Mars orbital insertion phases on January 29, 1989, gathering data o n the Sun, interplanetary medium, Mars, and Phobos. Shortly before the final pha se of the mission, during which the spacecraft was to approach within 50 m of Ph obos' surface and release two landers, one a mobile 'hopper', the other a statio nary platform, contact with Phobos 2 was lost. The mission ended when the spacec raft signal failed to be successfully reacquired on March 27, 1989. The cause of the failure was determined to be a malfunction of the on-board computer.[citati on needed] Just a few years later in 1992 Mars Observer, launched by NASA, failed as it app roached Mars. Mars 96, an orbiter launched on November 16, 1996 by Russia failed , when the planned second burn of the Block D-2 fourth stage did not occur.[101] Following the success of Global Surveyor and Pathfinder, another spate of failur es occurred in 1998 and 1999, with the Japanese Nozomi orbiter and NASA's Mars C limate Orbiter, Mars Polar Lander, and Deep Space 2 penetrators all suffering va

rious fatal errors. Mars Climate Orbiter was noted for mixing up U.S. customary units with metric units, causing the orbiter to burn up while entering Mars' atm osphere. Timeline of Mars exploration[edit] Source:[102] Totals[edit] Mission type Success rate Total attempts Success Partial success Launch f ailure Failed en route Failed to orbit/land Flyby 45% 11 5 0 4 2 0 Orbiter 50% 23 10 2 5 3 3 Lander 53% 15 8 0 0 3 4 Rover 66% 6 4 0 0 0 2 Sample return 0% 1 0 0 0 1 (Phobos) 0 Total 51% 55 26 2 9 9 9 Mars missions by year Mars mission rates through time 1969/1971 and 1986/1988 are historical minimum energy launch windows to Mars note: for the purpose of this graph an orbiter carrying a lander is considered t wo missions Timeline[edit] [hide]Mission (1960 1969) Launch Arrival at Mars Termination Elements Outcome Soviet space programme Mars 1M No.1 10 October 1960 10 October 1960 Flyby Launch failure Soviet space programme Mars 1M No.2 14 October 1960 14 October 1960 Flyby Launch failure Soviet space programme Mars 2MV-4 No.1 24 October 1962 24 October 1962 Flyby Broke up shortly after launch Soviet space programme Mars 1 1 November 1962 21 March 1963 Flyby Some data collected, but lost contact before reaching Mars, flyby at approx. 193 ,000 km Soviet space programme Mars 2MV-3 No.1 4 November 1962 19 January 1963 Lander Failed to leave Earth's orbit National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 3 5 November 1964 5 November 1964 Flyby Failure during launch ruined trajectory National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 4 28 November 1964 14 July 1965 21 December 1967 Flyby Success (21 images returned)[71] Soviet space programme Zond 2 30 November 1964 May 1965 Flyby Communication lost three months before reaching Mars National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 6 25 February 1969 31 July 1969 August 1969 Flyby Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 7 27 March 1969 5 August 1969 August 1969 Flyby Success Soviet space programme Mars 2M No.521 27 March 1969 27 March 1969 Orbiter Launch failure Soviet space programme Mars 2M No.522 2 April 1969 2 April 1969 Orbiter Launch failure Mission (1970 1989) Launch Arrival at Mars Termination Elements Outcome National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 8 8 May 1971 8 May 1971 Orbiter Launch failure Soviet space programme Kosmos 419 10 May 1971 12 May 1971 Orbiter Launch failure National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mariner 9 30 May 1971 13 November 1971 27 October 1972 Orbiter Success (first successful orbit) Soviet space programme Mars 2 19 May 1971 27 November 1971 22 Augus t 1972 Orbiter Success 27 November 1971 Lander, rover[34] Crashed on surface of Mars

Soviet space programme Mars 3 28 May 1971 2 December 1971 22 August 1972 Orbiter Success 2 December 1971 Lander, rover[34] Partial success. First successful landin g; landed softly but ceased transmission within 15 seconds Soviet space programme Mars 4 21 July 1973 10 February 1974 10 Febru ary 1974 Orbiter Could not enter orbit, made a close flyby Soviet space programme Mars 5 25 July 1973 2 February 1974 21 February 1974 Orbiter Partial success. Entered orbit and returned data, but failed within 9 da ys[103] Soviet space programme Mars 6 5 August 1973 12 March 1974 12 March 1974 Lander Partial success. Data returned during descent but not after landing on M ars Soviet space programme Mars 7 9 August 1973 9 March 1974 9 March 1974 Lander Landing probe separated prematurely; entered heliocentric orbit National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Viking 1 20 August 1975 20 July 1976 17 August 1980 Orbiter Success 13 November 1982 Lander Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Viking 2 9 September 1975 3 September 1976 25 July 1978 Orbiter Success 11 April 1980 Lander Success Soviet space programme Phobos 1 7 July 1988 2 September 1988 Orbiter Contact lost while en route to Mars[104] Lander Not deployed Soviet space programme Phobos 2 12 July 1988 29 January 1989 27 March 1989 Orbiter Partial success: entered orbit and returned some data. Contact lost just before deployment of landers Landers Not deployed Launch Arrival at Mars Termination Elements Mission (1990 1999) Outcome National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Observer 25 Septe mber 1992 24 August 1993 21 August 1993 Orbiter Lost contact just before arrival National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Global Surveyor 7 Novemb er 1996 11 September 1997 5 November 2006 Orbiter Success Russian Federal Space Agency Mars 96 16 November 1996 17 Novem ber 1996 Orbiter, lander, penetrator Launch failure National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Pathfinder 4 Decemb er 1996 4 July 1997 27 September 1997 Lander, rover Success National Space Development Agency of Japan Nozomi (Planet-B) 3 July 1998 9 December 2003 Orbiter Complications while en route; Never entered orbit[105] National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Climate Orbiter 11 Decem ber 1998 23 September 1999 23 September 1999 Orbiter Crashed on surface due to metric-imperial mix-up National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Polar Lander 3 Januar y 1999 3 December 1999 3 December 1999 Lander Crash-landed on surface due to i mproper hardware testing National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Deep Space 2 (DS2) Hard lan ders Mission (2000 2009) Launch Arrival at Mars Termination Elements Outcome National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA 2001 Mars Odyssey 7 April 2001 24 October 2001 Currently operational Orbiter Success European Space Agency Mars Express 2 June 2003 25 December 2003 Currently operational Orbiter Success United Kingdom Beagle 2 6 February 2004 Lander Landing failure; fate unknown. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA MER-A Spirit 10 June 2003 4 January 2004 22 March 2011 Rover Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA MER-B Opportunity 7 July 2 003 25 January 2004 Currently operational Rover Success European Space Agency Rosetta 2 March 2004 25 February 2007 Currentl

y operational Gravity assist en route to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter 12 August 2005 10 March 2006 Currently operational Orbiter Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Phoenix 4 August 2007 25 May 2008 10 November 2008 Lander Success National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Dawn 27 September 2007 17 February 2009 Currently operational Gravity assist to Vesta Success Mission (2010 2019) Launch Arrival at Mars Termination Elements Outcome Russian Federal Space Agency Fobos-Grunt 8 November 2011 8 Novemb er 2011 Phobos lander, sample return Failed to leave Earth orbit.[106] Fell b ack to Earth.[107] China National Space Administration Yinghuo-1 8 November 2011 Orbiter National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA MSL Curiosity 26 Novem ber 2011 6 August 2012 Currently operational Rover Success Indian Space Research Organisation Mars Orbiter Mission 5 November 2013 24 Septe mber 2014 Currently operational Orbiter In orbit and operational[108] National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA MAVEN 18 November 2013 22 September 2014 Currently operational Orbiter In orbit and operational [54] Future missions[edit] Name Estimated launch Elements Notes National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA InSight March 2016 Lander, drill Study interior structure of Mars. European Space Agency Russian Federal Space Agency ExoMars 2016 Orbiter, lander Trace Gas Orbite r to deliver the Schiaparelli EDM lander. 2018 Lander, rover Russian lander to deploy ExoMars rover National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars 2020 2020 Rover Astrobiology objectives; rover is based on the Curiosity rover.[109] Under study[edit] Name Estimated launch Elements Notes Finnish Meteorological Institute MetNet precursor 2015 or later[59] Single impact lander test Precursor for multi-lander network.[110] Finnish Meteorological Institute MetNet after precursor[59] Multi-lander net work Simultaneous meteorological measurements at multiple locations.[59][110] Indian Space Research Organisation Mangalyaan 2 2018 Orbiter, lander Mars orb iter and lander launched by a GSLV launcher.[62][111] Netherlands Mars One Demo January 2016 Lander The first demonstration is proposed for launch in 2016.[112][113] Netherlands Mars One ComSat 2016 Orbiter Communications Satellite. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Mars Geyser Hopper 2016 Lander Would have the ability to fly or "hop" at least twice from its landed lo cation to reposition itself close to a CO2 geyser site. United States Inspiration Mars Foundation 5 January 2018 Manned flyby Private mission to send two humans around Mars on a free return trajectory, with out landing.[114] United States Red Dragon 2018 Lander Falcon Heavy rocket with a Drago n capsule; would look for biosignatures.[115][116] Netherlands Mars One Rover 2018 Rover Rover to select location for col ony.[117] National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA Icebreaker Life 2018 or 2020 Stationary lander Based on the 2008 Phoenix lander, would perform astrobiology tests on sub-surface ice.[118] National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA PADME 2020 Orbiter Would study Phobos and Deimos [119][120] China Sample return 2020 Rover, sample return Landing by 2020, soil sa

mple returned by 2030.[121] Netherlands Mars One 2021 6 landers, rover Two living units, two li fe support units and two supply units, with a second rover.[117] Emirates_Institution_for_Advanced_Science_and_Technology, UAE EIAST spaceship to Mars 2021 Flyby Would become the first Arab probe to Mars.[67] European Space Agency Network 2022 3 landers Meteorological network c oncept.[122] European Space Agency Phootprint[123] 2022 Lander and ascent stage Mars moo n sample return mission.[122] Netherlands Mars One 2022 Manned mission Colony.[117] Netherlands Mars One "Team Two" 2025 Manned mission Four more colonists.[117 ] Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency MELOS-1 2020s Orbiter, lander Would st udy geology and atmosphere.[124] Russian Federal Space Agency Mars-Grunt 2020s Orbiter, lander, ascent stage Single launch Mars sample return. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA BOLD 2020s 6 landers The Biological Oxidant and Life Detection would perform astrobiology tests on su b-surface soil.[125][126] Undeveloped concepts[edit] Mars 4NM and Mars 5NM projects intended by the Soviet Union for heavy Marsokhod (in 1973 according to initial plan of 1970) and Mars sample return (planned for 1975) missions by launching on N1 rocket that has never flown successfully.[127] Voyager USA, 1970s Two orbiters and two landers, launched by a single Saturn V r ocket. Mars Aerostat Russian/French balloon mission,[128] originally planned for the 19 92 launch window, postponed to 1994 and then to 1996 before being cancelled.[129 ] Mars Environmental Survey set of 16 landers planned for 1999 2009 Mars-98 Russian mission including an orbiter, lander, and rover, planned for 199 8 launch opportunity Mars Surveyor 2001 Lander October 2001 Mars lander (refurbished, became Phoenix lander) Beagle 3 2009 British lander mission meant to search for life, past or present. NetLander- 2007 or 2009 Mars netlanders Mars Telecommunications Orbiter September 2009 Mars orbiter for telecommunicatio ns Mars Astrobiology Explorer-Cacher 2018 rover Kitty Hawk Mars airplane micromission, proposed for December 17, 2003, the cente nnial of the Wright brothers' first flight.[130] Its funding was eventually give n to the 2003 Mars Network project.[131] Tumbleweed rover.[132]