Abstract In the endeavor to search for signs of extraterrestrial life within the Solar System our neighbor planet Mars and the moons Europa and Enceladus of the outer planets are the most promising candidates. For this purpose, the German Aerospace Center DLR is developing the following devices for in situ exploration: VaMEx (Valles Marineris Explorer), a network of small rovers and walking/crawling and flying robots, to explore the deep canyon of Mars; and the ice-moles EurEx (Europa Explorer) and EnEx (Enceladus Explorer) for the exploration of the subglacial oceans of Europa and Enceladus. The realization of those projects (e.g., VaMEx mission by 2035, and EurEx mission not before 2050) requires their involvement in a global exploration program, comparable to the program of the Global Exploration Roadmap, which has been developed by 14 space agencies with the final goal of bringing human explorers to Mars.
The Search for Signatures of Life and Habitability on Planets and Moons of Our Solar System
2018-01-01
25 pages
Aufsatz/Kapitel (Buch)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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