European Space Agency claims joint Russian Mars rover probably won’t launch this year

Image: ESA

A Russian-European mission to Mars will likely be delayed due to new sanctions against Russia. The side effects of Russia's invasion here on Earth are felt by the space partnership.

The launch of a robotic rover to explore the Red Planet's surface is part of the mission. The European Space Agency and Russia's state space corporation have been working together for a decade. The first phase of the mission was launched in 2016 by the European Space Agency and the Russian space agency, and included a test lander to demonstrate the capabilities needed to land on the Martian surface. The test lander crashed due to a software glitch after the orbiter successfully began its mission.

The second phase of the mission continued with the launch of a Mars rover named after a British chemist who discovered the structure of DNA. The launch of the rover was supposed to take place this summer, but now it is questionable.

The rover's mission is being provided by both ESA and ROSS. The Rosalind Franklin rover is designed to look for signs of life on the red planet. Russia is giving the landing element that will help get the rover to the surface. The entire mission is going to be launched on a Russian rocket.

We deplore the tragic events taking place in Ukraine, a crisis which escalated dramatically into war in recent days. Many difficult decisions are now being taken at ESA in consideration of the sanctions implemented by the governments of our Member States.https://t.co/nOg8orZr1n https://t.co/5Mr6WexY9I

— Josef Aschbacher (@AschbacherJosef) February 28, 2022

The European Union and the United States announced new sanctions against Russia. According to the European Union, the sanctions cover areas of finance, energy, transport, technology, and visa policy. The agency noted that it was complying with the sanctions.

The sanctions imposed on Russia by our Member States are fully implemented, according to the update.

The head of Roscosmos claimed that the European Space Agency decided to freeze off her ears to spite their Russian grandmother.

The news comes after Russia announced that it would be suspending launches of its Soyuz rocket from Europe's primary spaceport in French Guiana, South America, in light of the sanctions. Arianespace had an agreement with the Russians to use the Soyuz to launch satellites out of French Guiana or Baikonur. Russia said it would withdraw 87 of its staff members from the Guiana Space Center on upcoming launches. Russia and NASA had been working on a joint mission to Venus. The International Space Station is still being maintained by NASA and Roscosmos.

The mission has been delayed many times and the most recent delay is the most recent. The rover was supposed to launch as early as 2018, but was pushed back because of equipment not being ready in time. A planned launch in 2020 was delayed to allow for more time to test the vehicle's parachutes, which are crucial to landing the vehicle on Mars. If the launch of ExoMars doesn't happen this year, it won't happen again for another two years.