NASA Confirms Support for ESA Mars Rover Rosalind Franklin by Providing Essential Components

The U.S. space agency is at a critical moment in its history, with promised cuts from the Trump administration (which must be approved by Congress) for the scientific part, prioritizing missions from the Artemis program. In recent hours, NASA has confirmed its support for the European ExoMars mission, which includes the ESA Mars rover Rosalind Franklin, expected to launch in 2028.

NASA has given approval to begin implementing its project to support ESA's Rosalind Franklin mission. Scheduled to launch in 2028, this Mars rover will be the first to search for signs of past or present life beneath the surface of the Red Planet.

After the end of collaboration with Russia due to the invasion of Ukraine, the second part of the ExoMars mission (which already has the Trace Gas Orbiter, known as TGO, in orbit around Mars) has been postponed for several years to seek alternatives for both the lander that will carry the Rosalind Franklin rover to the surface and the supply of radioactive material needed to maintain temperature during the night on the Red Planet.

ESA has long sought both European alternatives and the support of NASA, which has extensive experience in the construction and operational aspects of Mars rovers (notably, Curiosity and Perseverance are still functioning on the Red Planet).

The ExoMars mission will remain ESA-led, with the agency providing the rover, the transport platform, and the lander (which has been commissioned to Airbus after the end of collaboration with Roscosmos). ESA will also be responsible for surface operations and the general functionality of the hardware on Mars. NASA's involvement comes through the Rosalind Franklin Support and Augmentation project (abbreviated to ROSA).

The U.S. agency will provide the launch vehicle, braking engines for the Rosalind Franklin rover’s lander platform, and radioisotope heating units. In addition to these services and components, there will also be some electronics and a mass spectrometer for organic molecule research on Mars.

The ExoMars mission aims to search for organic molecules related to the possible presence of microbial life beneath the surface of Mars, particularly in the Oxia Planum region (where it will land). Unlike other rovers, its drill will be able to descend deeper, reaching soil layers where the preservation of molecules may have been better. According to NASA, the launch vehicle used will be a SpaceX Falcon Heavy, launching from Launch Complex 39A of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, which will provide the necessary launch capacity to reach the Red Planet.