Cannes – Italy is at the forefront of yet another historic achievement: the European Space Agency ExoMars mission that will confirm whether there is life on Mars. The weekly newspaper Panorama visited the Turin and Cannes laboratories of Thales Alenia Space, where the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) is currently being assembled. In 2016, the TGO will be mounted on the Entry Descent landing demonstrator Module that will reach Mars. “We are currently preparing for the environmental and functional tests that we plan to start in February – says Walter Cugno, director of the ExoMars program – Then the EDM and TGO modules will be assembled in Cannes.” Nine months after the launch, the system will reach Mars; the EDM will separate itself from the TGO and will enter the atmosphere to land on the Martian surface. (9Colonne)
