Overview
- NASA, which approved its ROSA support project Thursday, selected a Falcon Heavy launch from Kennedy Space Center for late 2028 under a $175.7 million contract.
- Under ROSA, NASA will supply braking engines for the descent stage, radioisotope heater units to keep the rover warm, onboard electronics, and a mass spectrometer, while ESA provides the rover, cruise stage, and lander.
- The administration’s fiscal 2027 budget proposal would zero out ROSA, and lawmakers including Sen. Jerry Moran and a group led by Sen. Mark Kelly have signaled they will try to restore NASA science funding.
- Engineers still must validate new parachutes and adapt the lander to U.S. braking engines and heater units, and missing the late‑2028 launch window would slip the mission to 2030.
- Rosalind Franklin will drill up to two meters below the surface at Oxia Planum to search for preserved organic molecules, a capability not matched by other Mars missions and years in the making after Russia’s 2022 exit from the program.