Airbus is designing a Mars rover to return soil samples



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March 2020 will draw and dig up soil samples to put in over 30 tubes and will then drop them at various points. The fetch rover, which could lead to the planet in 2026, will be able to detect them from a distance, autonomously drive them to their location, pick them up with a robotic arm and keep them in their storage space. It will also be possible to plan its route on its own every day.

Ben Boyes, who will lead the feasibility team at Airbus, explained:

"It will be a relatively small rover – about 130kg, but the requirements are very demanding. High-level of autonomy, planning its own path ahead day after day. "

Here's Airbus' early design for the fetch rover:

It could take the vehicle around 150 days to collect all the canisters March 2020 leaves behind. After that, it has to find the rocket it landed with. It will be possible to make the film to the rocket and it will be possible for it to blast off, which means we could be able to see the first lift from Mars within less than a decade. That rocket will then make an appointment to bring back the samples back to Earth. Of course, all those will be able to succeed if they are able to develop the technologies.

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