The first Soyuz-Fregat launch vehicle, of the type that will launch Mars Express in June 2003, was launched successfully today from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan today.
January 30th, 2000
ESA Zeros In On Martian Kennel
The Beagle 2 team has selected two potential landing sites on Mars for further study. In the latest issue of the Beagle 2 Bulletin, John Bridges from the Natural History Museum, London, who is leading the landing site study, writes: “The prospective areas are within the Chryse and Tritonis Lacus regions.
January 26th, 2000
Firms offered a chance to advertise on Mars Electronic Telegraph
Companies are being given the chance to advertise on another planet. The Beagle2 lander spacecraft needs sponsors. In return, firms will get a chance to display their logos on the craft as it touches down on Mars in December 2003.
January 26th, 2000
Beagle 2 team assesses landing sites
The Beagle 2 team has selected two potential landing sites on Mars for further study. In the latest issue of the Beagle 2 Bulletin, John Bridges from the Natural History Museum, London, who is leading the landing site study, writes: “The prospective areas are within the Chryse and Tritonis Lacus regions. Both are at low elevation, which gives more opportunity for the parachutes to brake the descent of Beagle 2. The latitude of the two sites, about 19
January 17th, 2000
Beagle Express To Mars Approved
Construction of a European spacecraft to explore Mars will go ahead following approval of a design for the spacecraft and despite uncertainty about what caused the loss of US probes to the red planet, officials said Monday. Mars Express, a venture costing 150 million euros (dollars), is due to be launched in June 2003.
January 13th, 2000
Mars Express construction begins European Space Agency
Construction of the Mars Express spacecraft can now begin, after final approval for the design was granted on Tuesday. A meeting chaired by Roger Bonnet, ESA’s Director of Scientific Programmes, and Jean-Jacques Dourdain, Director for Science Strategy and Technical Assessment, gave the approval after hearing a presentation on the findings of the science and engineering review team. The review team had endorsed the Mars Express design last December, after spending a week poring over the plans at the offices of Matra Marconi Space (MMS) in Toulouse. Starsem, the company that is providing the Fregat-Soyuz launcher, and MMS also presented their latest activities yesterday.
December 29th, 1999
European Mars mission looks for lessons in polar lander loss
In 2003, the European Space Agency (ESA) plans to send a low-cost orbiter and lander pair to Mars to search for water and life. Sound familiar?
December 13th, 1999
ESA Reassures Taxpayers: Mars Won’t Be Cheap
The ESA sought to reassure its European taxpayers last week that it would not sacrifice reliability for cost savings following the disastrous failure of two US cut-price missions to Mars.
November 16th, 1999
Mars Probe Loss Prompts ESA to Change Express Mission
The European Space Agency’s planned Mars Express mission will feature newly enhanced instruments to obtain research that was expected from the doomed Mars Climate Orbiter.
November 15th, 1999
ESA Confirms Mars Express Payload
The Science Programme Committee of the European Space Agency at its meeting on 9-10 November 1999 re-confirmed the payload of the Mars Express mission as approved in May 1998, with two important additions…