Vital role for UK comms in ExoMars mission

Farnborough-based Qinetiq is providing the UHF transceiver that will enable the project’s Schiaparelli lander to transmit data from the Martian surface to the ExoMars orbiter. According to the company, the device was put through extensive testing and evaluation in advance of the launch.

“We simulated landings on Mars in our vacuum chamber, by slowly leaking in gas to replicate the change in pressure when approaching the surface,” said Matthew Cosby, chief communications engineer at Qinetiq.

“We used our environmental chambers to test the equipment in extremes of hot and cold. Shock and vibration testing was carried out with Airbus Defence and Space in Portsmouth to make sure the system will survive launch and entry, descent and landing on Mars.”

Schiaparelli will separate from the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) three days before arrival at the Red Planet in October 2016. If everything goes to plan, the lander will transmit data back to Earth via the mother ship for between two and four days. The TGO’s mission will continue, as it searches for traces of gases including methane that could indicate the presence of organic life.