Probe to Study Mars' Atmosphere

After dispatching its experimental Schiaparelli lander Sunday, scientists with the European Space Agency are closely monitoring the spacecraft during the last leg of its journey to Mars.

The lander is on a controlled descent to the Red Planet’s surface, where it is expected to land Wednesday, according to the Associated Press. It will capture images of Mars and conduct scientific measurements of its surface, but its main purpose is to test technology for a future European Mars rover.

The probe’s mothership, the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), will stay in orbit, analyzing methane and other gases in the Martian atmosphere to help determine if there is or was life on the planet.

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"TGO will make a detailed inventory of Mars’ atmospheric gases, with particular interest in rare gases like methane, which implies that there is an active, current source," wrote the ESA in a statement. "TGO aims to measure methane’s geographical and seasonal dependence and help to determine whether it stems from a geological or biological source."

As of Sunday, the lander has been in hibernation mode as it gets closer to landing on Mars. Scientists were alarmed when the lander momentarily did not send back the expected signals, NPR reported. It did, however, send a "carrier signal" that showed it was operational, but didn’t communicate any telemetry data about its status or location. The full telemetry link was restored within a couple of hours.

The Schiaparelli probe and TGO were launched in March as part of the ExoMars mission, a joint venture between ESA and Russia’s Roscosmos space agency.

In the next stage of the mission, ESA plans to send a rover to Mars in 2020, equipped with a drill and instruments used for geochemistry and the search for life on the planet.

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