Europe was poised Tuesday to place a paddling pool-sized lander on Mars and a gas-sniffing craft in its orbit as part of a mission with Russia to scour the Red Planet for signs of life. High-stakes manoeuvres Wednesday should see the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) enter a gravity loop around our planetary neighbour, while a lander dubbed Schiaparelli makes a scorching, supersonic dash for its surface.
Commands for the TGO's orbit insertion were successfully uploaded on Tuesday, the European Space Agency (ESA) website said, "ready for execution". The TGO and Schiaparelli, launched into space in March, comprise phase one of the ExoMars mission through which Europe and Russia seek to join the United States in roaming the surface of the fourth rock on the Sun. The orbiter's job will be to sniff the Red Planet's atmosphere for gases possibly excreted by living organisms, however small or primitive.
Schiaparelli's purpose, in turn, is to test entry and landing technology for a subsequent Mars-drilling rover which will mark the second phase and high point of ExoMars. The first manoeuvre Wednesday, scheduled for 1304 GMT, will see the TGO execute its most critical command to date - initiating a 139-minute engine burn to slow down sufficiently to be captured by Mars' gravity.
Schiaparelli, meanwhile, will be executing its own daredevil mission. The 600-kilogramme (1,300-pound) craft is scheduled to enter the atmosphere at 1442 GMT and touch down six minutes later near the Martian equator in an area known as Meridiani Planum. With a 10-minute delay - the time it takes for a message to reach Earth - Schiaparelli will send home data on atmosphere temperature, humidity, density and electrical properties - crucial to planning a safe landing for the bigger and more expensive rover to follow. Schiaparelli will test crucial heat-protection, braking and soft touchdown technology.