European Space Agency: The main task in 2022 is to advance and implement the Mars rover launch mission

On January 18, local time, the European Space Agency held its headquarters in Paris for the year 2022. European Space Agency Director Joseph Ashbach told the media that the main job of the European Space Agency in 2022 is to advance and implement the Mars probe launch mission.

It is reported that the excellent window period for launching a Mars rover is only once every 26 months. In July 2020, China, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates all seized the opportunity to launch probes, but the long-simmering Mars exploration missions in Europe and Russia missed the opportunity.

It is understood that the rover of the Mars exploration mission jointly promoted by the European Space Agency and Russia has been named "Rosalind Franklin" as early as 2019 when it is ready to launch, in honor of this female scientist who has made great contributions in the field of genetics and virus research. This also indicates that one of the core missions of the rover is to search for water, organic matter and potential life, which is effectively complementary to the exploration missions of other rovers launched by other countries.

Previously, the launch of the Rosalind Franklin was postponed twice due to factors such as funding sources and changes in the design of the program, and in 2020, it was postponed again due to the epidemic and the test schedule. In September 2022, the Earth once again ushered in the best window for exploring Mars, and the Rosalind Franklin will be launched at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in conjunction with the European Space Agency's deep space cruise technology and Russian lander technology. (Reporter Ma Jinjin)

Source: CCTV news client