News

Further discussions on the Mars exploration programme will take place in the context of the Ministerial in November 2022, where a full statement will be presented. ESA Council has mandated the Director General to terminate cooperation with Roscosmos on the ExoMars rover and surface platform.

Vorticity is in step with ESA and fully supports the statement released by the Agency in March 2022. “An intergovernmental organisation mandated to develop and implement space programmes in full respect for European values, we deeply deplore the human casualties and tragic consequences of the aggression toward Ukraine. While recognising the impact on scientific exploration of space, ESA is fully aligned with the sanctions imposed on Russia by its Member States“.

ExoMars

ESA’s ruling Council, meeting in Paris on 16-17 March, assessed the situation arising from the war in Ukraine regarding ExoMars, and unanimously:

• acknowledged the present impossibility of carrying out the ongoing cooperation with Roscosmos on the ExoMars rover mission with a launch in 2022, and mandated the ESA Director General to take appropriate steps to suspend the cooperation activities accordingly;
• authorised the ESA Director General to carry out a fast-track industrial study to better define the available options for a way forward to implement the ExoMars rover mission.

The ExoMars Dynamics Extraction Testing (DET) campaign at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California has concluded successfully. A total of six dynamic extraction tests were completed, managed by Vorticity.

The European Space Agency (ESA) and the Roscosmos Space Corporation have decided to postpone the launch of the second ExoMars mission to study the Red Planet to 2022.

Vorticity will be continuing to support the mission through the High Altitude Drop Tests (HADTs) of the parachute system and continued analysis and consultation activities.

Vorticity’s team of experts lead the way with novel designs and new testing technologies in ESA’s seven-year project.