ExoLance: crowdfunding project to search for life on Mars under the surface of the planet from NASA veterans

"Dart" from the transport ship is sent to Mars, and stuck in its surface. Next comes the automatic laboratory in the case, the data on the results of the research are transmitted to the satellite.

Is there life on Mars? This question was first asked by scientists many decades ago. Despite the fact that many are now trying to find an answer to it, the search is being conducted with the help of such high-tech robots like Curiosity, and so far no “no” or “no” can be said.

Life could exist earlier when liquid water existed on the surface of the Red Planet. But now there are no signs of life on the surface, and no one looked under the surface, except Curiosity, who drilled several relatively shallow wells. Some NASA scientists believe that the search for life on the surface, anhydrous, actively irradiated by the Sun, will not be crowned with success.
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Life must be sought below the surface, probably at a depth of several meters. In order to prove their point of view, a team of scientists, including some veterans of NASA, decided to create a new project, ExoLance .

The project provides for the "shelling" of Mars with probes, whose shape is very similar to the shape of darts for playing darts. Such a dart, according to the plan, should stick a few meters into the ground of Mars (about 2 meters), and explore the ground at depth. Then, after the analysis carried out by the automated laboratory, the results will be transmitted to the orbital satellite, which will transmit data already to Earth.

"Darts" ExoLance is planned to stick in several places of Mars. Unfortunately, the system has not yet been verified, and funds are needed to test it in field facilities. And these funds are collected by scientists at Indiegogo. In case of a successful fundraising, the test system is planned to be tested in the New Mexico desert, whose conditions are close to the Martian ones (of course, everything is relative).


Pssst, Mars, is there life? And if we find?

Via Popular Science