How will Airbus bring the first samples ever from planet Mars - Introducing the Earth Return Orbiter

Airbus has been selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) for the Mars Sample Returns Earth Return Orbiter (ERO) the first ever spacecraft to bring samples back to Earth from Mars.

Mars Sample Return (MSR) is a joint ESA-NASA campaign and the next step in the exploration of Mars.

The five year mission will see the spacecraft head to Mars, act as a communication relay with the surface missions, perform a rendezvous with the orbiting samples and bring them safely back to Earth.

To be launched on an Ariane 6 in 2026, the 6 ton, 6 m high spacecraft, equipped with 144m² solar arrays with a span of over 40 m some of the biggest ever built will take about a year to reach Mars. It will use a mass-efficient hybrid propulsion system combining electric propulsion for the cruise and spiral down phases and chemical propulsion for Mars orbit insertion.

For more info:
https://www.airbus.com/newsroom/press-releases/en/2020/10/airbus-to-bring-first-mars-samples-to-earth-esa-contract-award.html

https://www.airbus.com/space/space-exploration/earth-return-orbiter.html

#Mars #SpaceExploration #MarsSampleReturn