Manufacturer Replaces Russia to Build a Landing Platform for ESA’s Rover

Taking over an agreement originally made with Russia, Airbus Defense and Space has been awarded a contract to construct a landing platform for the European Space Agency’s (ESA) ExoMars rover. The Martian mission is slated to launch in 2028.

The contract was issued by the European Space Agency and Thales Alenia Space (TAS), which is a partnership between Thales and Leonardo. Though Airbus did not disclose their price, the UK valued the agreement at nearly $200 million.

Airbus built Rosalind Franklin in the Stevenage, England, bio-burden cleanroom and delivered it to TAS in 2019 for what was supposed to be a 2022 mission. However, the agency was forced to postpone the launch due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which also led the ESA to terminate its prior deal with Russia for the launch platform build. Work was resumed in April 2024 in a $565 million contract with TAS.

Airbus is now responsible for building a landing platform for the ExoMars rover, named Rosalind Franklin. This includes its landing structure, propulsion system, and landing gear. After the spacecraft descends through Mars’s atmosphere and uses a parachute to slow down, the ExoMars landing platform will perform the final landing burn and ensure a stable landing. It will then extend two ramps for Rosalind Franklin to choose between and roll off the spacecraft.

The US will also play a major role in the mission. Through a May 2024 agreement, NASA will contribute throttlable braking engines for the landing platform, radioisotope heating units (RHUs), and the launch vehicle.

The contract announcement confirmed that the ESA plans to launch the mission in 2028. It will land on the surface of Mars in 2030, avoiding the planet’s dust season, and begin to look for any evidence of life. Rosalind Franklin contains a drill that will gather measurements up to two meters below ground.

“Getting the Rosalind Franklin rover onto the surface of Mars is a huge international challenge and the culmination of more than 20 years’ work,” stated Kata Escott, managing director of Airbus Defence and Space UK. “We are proud to have built the rover in our state-of-the-art Stevenage cleanroom and delighted now to develop the project to ensure its safe delivery to Mars."

FMI: www.airbus.com