In the end, the Phoenix mission that studied the land at a northern latitude in 2007 was chosen
NASA has selected 10 ideas for experiments on Mars that will be examined in depth and from which a number of experiments will be selected for the spacecraft that will be launched in 2007.
Among the tasks are those that will require taking a sample of soil, dust and gas and transferring it to Earth. A lander that will hover over Martian canyons, deploy small satellites to analyze the atmosphere and weather, and rely on a rover to examine the age of rocks and soil.
A total of 43 proposals were submitted in response to NASA's call and each of the bidders received $150 for six months to investigate the field in depth before the final selection.
Ed Weiler Associate Director of Space Sciences at NASA reviewed the proposals and selected the ten highest quality proposals to match the requested cost of the selection process: $300 million.
The ten conceptual proposals will provide new perspectives and innovative tools for Mars exploration," said Jim Garvin, chief scientist for NASA's Mars Probe, in a press release.
Here are the suggestions:
1. Collecting samples for Mars research: The main task is to collect samples of dust and gas and return them to Earth.
2. Exploring the walls of Walls Marineris Canyon using three surfboards.
3. An all-terrain vehicle that will locate the geological age of materials and send the data to Earth.
4. A network of small satellites that will orbit Mars to analyze the planet's atmosphere and water.
5. Exploration of Mars and its poles using three small all-terrain vehicles and micro-vehicles that will allow the investigation of the composition of water and organic materials.
6. A hyphen that will analyze the role of water, dust and ice in the atmosphere of Mars.
7. A network of 24 meteorological stations on the surface of Mars to check the humidity, air pressure and temperature for two years.
8. Reconnaissance radar: A satellite equipped with a special radar that will map the surface of Mars and look under the surface in hidden water channels.
9. Four landers to examine what is happening below the surface using low frequency sound waves.
10. Using hot water jets to dig tens of meters inside the polar ice cap to examine the composition of the soil and look for organic materials.
