UK researchers will create a new instrument as part of a European mission to search for life on Mars.
The device, named Enfys – which means “rainbow” in Welsh, will replace a Russian-made instrument on the Rosalind Franklin rover.
The European Space Agency spacecraft was due to launch last year but collaboration with Russia’s space agency stopped following the Ukraine invasion.
With £10.7 million additional funding from the UK Space Agency, a team led by the University of Aberystwyth in Wales will build the instrument that will identify areas on Mars with “high potential of evidence of life”.
The rover will collect samples by drilling around two metres below surface and analyse them in an onboard laboratory.
Science, research and innovation minister Andrew Griffith said: “Is there life on Mars?’
“That has been asked by mankind for generations and this UK investment is an exciting opportunity to enhance our understanding of the red planet and perhaps finally answer that very question.”
Other UK institutions involved in the project include the University of Leicester, Bradford University, University College London’s (UCL) Mullard Space Science Laboratory and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.
Dr Paul Bate, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, said: “The UK-built Rosalind Franklin rover is a truly world-leading piece of technology at the frontier of space exploration.
“It is fantastic that experts from the UK can also provide a key instrument for this mission, using UK Space Agency funding.
“As well as boosting world-class UK space technology to further our understanding of Mars and its potential to host life, this extra funding will strengthen collaboration across the fast-growing UK space sector and economy.”
The £10m rover, which was built by Airbus in Stevenage, is due to launch in 2028.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here