SPACE.com -- Mars Express Instruments Check Out

An artist's conception of Mars Express at the red planet. The mission is among the fastest and cheapest by the European Space Agency (ESA). It will search for water and evidence of life on Mars. Click to enlarge.

A breakdown of how Mars Express fits together. The Beagle 2 can be seen sitting on the lid of the craft and the main communications antenna is visible in the lower left. The orbiter carries seven instruments including MARSIS, a low-frequency radar designed to probe the subsurface of Mars for water. Click to enlarge.

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Mars Express Mission Update Archive


	Mars Express Instruments Check Out By SPACE.com Staff posted: 03:45 pm ET 09 July 2003

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European researchers have just about wrapped up initial in-flight tests of their Mars Express probe, completing the first stage of a mission that will search for water and life on the Red Planet.

The near-Earth phase of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Mars Express finished with a successful test of Beagle 2, the probe's lander that will seek signs of past or present life on Mars.

"This check-out was a marvelous example of complete cooperation between ESA's Mars Express and Beagle lander teams," said Rudi Schmidt, Mars Express project manager, in a written statement. The tests, he added, were a major milestone in the spacecraft's mission.

Ground controllers at ESA's Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany uploaded software and switched various Beagle 2 units on and off during the systems checkout, which was conducted overnight between July 4 and July 5. The tests were originally scheduled for two weeks ago, but were delayed when the spacecraft's Solid State Mass Memory (SSMM), part of its onboard computer memory, appeared not to respond properly during an earlier instrument check-out.

On July 2, ESA announced a 30 percent drop in the power generated by Mars Express' solar arrays due to an inter-connection between the arrays and the power-conditioning unit. The power loss will impact how some Mars Express instruments perform once they begin their science missions.

Mission scientists said each of the seven instruments aboard Mars Express has performed as expected and the spacecraft is set to make its first scientific measurements in mid-July, when it will conduct a star calibration of various instruments. Another star calibration session is scheduled for Mars Express once it moves closer to the Red Planet.

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