ExoMars (Exobiology on Mars) is a Mars mission organized by the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian Federal Space Agency (RKA). The program has two launch dates. An orbiter and a stationary lander is planned for launch in 2016, and a Russian lander to deliver the rover is planned for 2018.The primary goal of this mission is to determine whether there has ever been Martian life on Mars.
RTEMS will be incorporated into a flight representative LEON2-Pender board for the ExoMars Rover Vehicle.
ExoMars Rover Vehicle
The ExoMars Rover Vehicle is a planned Mars rover to be launched in May 2018. The rover is an autonomous six-wheeled terrain vehicle with close-up collision avoidance cameras used to ensure safe navigation. Once the rover lands on Mars, it will begin its 218-sol mission to investigate for past life on Mars. The rover will be equipped with a drill in which will be used to sample soil and search for basic microorganisms. The rover is intended to be solar powered and to weigh approximately 200 kg. It will use candidate flight representative processor, LEON2 SPARC v8 platform which will use RTEMS real time operating system. The rover will also have an autonomous software for visual terrain navigation to reduce communication lag.
EDM Lander
The Entry, descent and landing Demonstrator Module (EDM), will investigate the Martian atmosphere as it descends toward the planet’s surface. The lander will also take a variety of environmental readings and return the first-ever data on electrical fields at the surface of Mars. After entering the Martian atmosphere, the module will deploy a parachute and will complete its landing by using a closed-loop guidance, navigation and control system based on a Radar Doppler Altimeter sensor and on-board Inertial Measurement Units.
ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter
ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) is a robotic orbiter-carrier that will be launched on January 2016. Upon, reaching Mars, The TGO will first deliver the EDM stationary lander and then map the sources of methane on Mars and other gases to help find a landing site for the ExoMars Rover Vehicle. The TGO has a mass of 3130 kg and will obtain its energy from a 20m² photovoltaic array providing 140W of power.
