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The man has a 50/50 chance of finding evidence of life on Mars over the next three years, predict scientists working on the robot's next mission.
The British-led team conducting tests on the ExoMars robot has announced that its plans for deep searches for the first time under the Martian surface greatly improve the chances of discovering past or present extraterrestrial life.
Previous missions mainly badyzed surface rocks and topsoil. However, scientists believe that the thin atmosphere of the red planet and the corresponding intense radiation mean that all the evidence of life, except the most profoundly hidden, will have been eradicated.
In contrast, a gear from the European Space Agency (ESA), expected to be launched in 2020 and arrive the following year, will be equipped with a 2 m (7 ft) seed drill.
ESA's first Mars rover will also be equipped with state-of-the-art lasers that can detect the presence of DNA by badyzing how the dirt molecules vibrate.
Under the leadership of Airbus, an avant-garde test team "ExoFit" is testing a prototype vehicle in the desert of Tabernas, in southern Spain.
Susannah Schwenzer, astrobiologist of the team, said: "The chances are about equal for 50/50. We have a very good chance – we are going to a very, very interesting place. "
Dr. Ben Dobke, director of the ExoFit project, said, "If you want to find microbial evidence of life, they are probably under the surface."
Once on Mars, the solar-powered rover will attempt to navigate the rock surface, excavate the ground and relay other sightings for at least 90 days. Engineers piloting the project hope that it will work much longer.
It may not be smart, but once you have a microbial life, it is the difficult step. The evolution is going on
Operating within 20 minutes, in accordance with the instructions of the Head of Mission in Harwell (Oxfordshire), ESA will attempt to position the rover towards the edge of the regoliths, areas of unconsolidated soil on bedrock, in order to To get the best samples. Mark Shilton, the Airbus engineer who drives the rover prototype – nicknamed Charlie – at the team's remote control center in the desert, said, "It's not like driving a car. There is a fairly complex, extremely slow and methodical software chain. The challenge is that often the most interesting places for geologists are the most difficult for the rover. Each move is planned with rigor.
With a top speed of 3.5 cm per second, the rover has a series of cameras mounted on top of a mast, while behind are hanging two cases containing a radar penetrating the ground.
Among the most sophisticated instruments is the RAMAN Laser Spectrometer, a technology never before sent to Mars, which makes it possible to determine the chemical bonds of molecules by the way they move under the light.
The ultimate price for ExoMars would be the DNA proof, which would be to prove that life already exists on the red planet.
But if the machine returns evidence on other organic molecules, such as amino acids, ESA scientists will have to determine whether they are indigenous to Mars or arrived on the planet via an asteroid.
"Of course we would be delighted if we found DNA – that's the proof," said Dr. Schwenzer. "But that badumes that life on Mars looks exactly like life on Earth … If you're looking for a needle in a haystack, you have to wonder what this needle might look like and how it could have changed over time.
"If we find a life that looks exactly like Earth, we could all be Martians, which is a huge thing in itself. If life is different from what we have on Earth, it means that life can happen very often, which means that there could be other places in our solar system – Icy moons, Europa with an ocean below, for example – where we could also have life. .
But that badumes that life on Mars looks exactly like life on Earth … If you're looking for a needle in a haystack, you have to wonder what this needle might look like and how it might have changed over time.
"It may not be smart, but once you have a microbial life, it's not difficult. The evolution then follows its course. "
A rival mission of NASA, called March 2020, will take place at about the same time in 2020.
Unlike ExoMars, the US probe will have a potential operating period of several years as it will be powered by a nuclear cell. He will also carry out a soil excavation exercise that will be brought back to Earth by a future ESA-Nasa Mars "return of samples" mission.
The target location of ExoMars, which will be announced next month, will be a product of balance between the need to land in a geologically promising area with the correct altitude requirements. Since the Russian-built lander will operate in a parachute, the team must ensure that the atmosphere above the landing area is thick enough to slow down the craft sufficiently.
In examining the factitious landing place in Spain, which served as a frame for films such as The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade, Mr. Dobke was philosophical.
"If it lands and deploys successfully, then it will be a huge feat … because about 50% of Mars missions fail – they do not even land," he said. "But it is this human question that transcends science and all the rest, we are alone; Is there anything else there?
"Even if it's not smart, it opens the possibility of looking up to the sky and thinking that other things are out there, it's not just an expanse of nothingness."
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