Eyes on Mars
Humans can only see colours in visible light. Europe’s martian rover has a wider range of vision to search for past and present signs of life on Mars.
The ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover is equipped with scientific eyes atop its mast, on a panoramic camera suite called PanCam. From its vantage point about two metres above the ground, PanCam cameras come into play to get the big picture with high resolution imaging.
PanCam can ‘see’ in 19 colours, in the visible and near infrared wavelengths. Each of its two wide-angle cameras has a filter wheel with 11 positions to look at the colours of the rocks and the martian sky. Scientists can create 3D pictures and depth maps by overlaying simultaneous snapshots. A high-resolution camera is used to study very fine details in exposed bedrocks, rocks and soils, such as rock texture, laminations and grain size in colour.
In this computer image, Rosalind Franklin approaches a slightly elevated area in Oxia Planum – the landing site for ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover on Mars. The terrain depicts a few mounds that could be the remains of some wind-eroded vents. Since fluids could have broken through the vents, this represents a very interesting formation to look for biosignatures – the evidence of past or present life.
Enfys, meaning rainbow in Welsh, is the ExoMars' rover infrared spectrometer to study mineral composition. Enfys and PanCam will work in synergy: PanCam is used to obtain colour and visual information of what lies around the rover, while Enfys’ job is to inform scientists of what minerals are present.
All these images of the terrain are essential for scientists on Earth to understand the geological context on Mars. Identifying minerals formed in the presence of water, for example, could guide the rover to the best places for drilling and collecting samples. Rosalind Franklin will be the first rover to drill two metres below the surface, and Enfys and PanCam will let it know where it should go.
Fast forward to the future and watch the first episode of the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission. The episode starts after a successful descent and landing on the Red Planet in 2030.
