Parachutes for the Russian-European ExoMars mission have been successfully tested in the United States. It is planned to launch it next year.
Russia, together with its European colleagues, is preparing for one of the most important space missions in its new history — the launch of a landing platform with a rover on board. Recently, specialists have successfully tested two parachutes of the second stage. This was reported by TASS with reference to ESA (European Space Agency).
The tests were conducted in Oregon on November 21 and December 3. One of the models was produced by the European company Aerocosmo, and the other by Airborne Systems from the USA. Both parachutes have performed well, new tests will take place before March next year. The creators do not hide their optimism: the double success brings the mission closer to the launch scheduled for next year.
Meanwhile, not all tests of the parachute system were successful. In June [...], a supersonic parachute of the first stage and a subsonic parachute of the second stage were tested at the Swedish Esrange test site. The subsonic parachute from Arescosmo experienced increased loads and burst when opening. The damage forced us to send the product for revision.
Infographic showing the sequence of the opening of the parachute system of the ExoMars lander (not in scale, the colors are illustrative)
Image source: ESA, Roscosmos
The developers' attention to detail is easy to understand. During the first phase of the program, implemented in 2016, the Schiaparelli module crashed (made a hard landing) during landing. The cause of the accident was a failure in the operation of the inertial measuring unit, as a result of which the height was incorrectly calculated. Another element of the project, the Trace Gas Orbiter, launched a scientific mission in 2018.
As part of the second stage of ExoMars, Russia is responsible for the creation of the lander, while the Europeans are creating a rover. He was named Rosalind Franklin, after the English biophysicist Rosalind Franklin. The weight of the device is 310 kilograms. The equipment installed on the rover, scientists hope, will answer the question of the existence of life on Mars: now or in the past.
Among other things, the planetoid was equipped with a 70-centimeter drill and three stackable rods, which will make it possible to obtain rock samples from a depth of up to two meters.
Recall that Russia has another key mission scheduled for next year — Luna-25. It is designed to test the technology of a soft landing at the south pole of a natural satellite, which in the future will bring the country closer to creating a base there. Earlier it was reported that the optimal day for the launch of Luna-25 is July 23.
