The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express orbiter is not expected to begin its search for subsurface ice water until November, despite the imminent completion of the delayed deployment of its radar sensor.
A seasonal Martian ionosphere that emerges in July will interfere with scans of the surface by the probe’s Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS) sensor. The multi-frequency synthetic-aperture radar altimeter will be able to penetrate to a depth of 5km (3.1 miles). Knowing the amount of water on Mars will have major implications for future manned missions. But ESA will not be ready to scan the planet before mid-July, despite this month’s deployment of the MARSIS sensor’s three booms, and it is “highly likely” there will be will no subsurface scans until November when the ionosphere fades, says Fred Jansen, Mars Express mission manager. The orbiter arrived in January 2004, but has experienced boom deployment problems.
Source: Flight International
