Mission
The first interplanetary mission from the European Space Agency (ESA), the Mars Express mission was launched the first of June 2003. The mission's lander, named Beagle 2, is dedicated to looking for life and conducting geochemical/atmospheric analyses on Mars.
The British-built Beagle 2 was named in commemoration of the ship that took biologist Charles Darwin on the epic voyages that shaped his theory of evolution.
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System Overview
As it has no propulsion system of its own, Beagle 2 was integrated onto the European Space Agency (ESA) Mars Express spacecraft, which will conduct scientific studies of Mars from orbit. The pair should arrive in the Mars system in late December.
A week before Mars Express is to begin its orbit, the host spacecraft powered up Beagle 2 batteries and deployed the lander package on an atmospheric entry trajectory.
After the December 25 landing, the probe's primary mission is expected to last about 180 Martian days, which are slightly longer than those on Earth.
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Lander
Beagle 2 has the challenge of supporting and ensuring the survivability
upon landing of all the equipment required to carry out its scientific mission on the surface.
Beagle 2 will drop onto Mars out of its cocoon of gas-filled bags. The clam-like structure could land in any orientation and initially come into contact with a variety of surfaces, from rocky to flat.
Beagle 2's outer shell provides energy absorption and thermal insulation within a casing that must spread the impact loads and resist tearing. The inner shell consists of carbon-fiber skins on an aluminum honeycomb core, making up the primary structure. |
Robot Arm
Beagle 2's robotic arm was developed to remove specific scientific instruments and tools from the lander and deploy them in positions where they can study or obtain samples of the rocks and soil.
The arm supports the panoramic cameras and deploys the crawling mole to gather subsurface soil samples, returning these to the on-board analytical laboratory.
The concentration of instruments at the end of the robotic arm is now aptly referred to as Beagle 2's PAW (Position Adjustable Workbench).
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