MEXICO: A simulation of mission to Mars has been organized and scheduled at the Western University in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) from November 16 to 27.
Through the Mars rover simulation exercise wherein students will be simulating various stages of a sample return mission, the university intends to train 35 undergraduate students, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows from across the country.
The event will see students from Western, York University, Saint Mary’s University, and the University of British Columbia participate in simulation of a sample return mission currently underway at a field site in Utah, USA. The exercise will involve mission planning, commanding the Mars Exploration Science Rover (MESR) and identifying, characterizing and collecting rock samples all while remaining within MESR’s data, energy, and time constraints.
The MESR is a six-wheeled rover packed with a range of equipment including a three-dimensional (3D) laser scanner and suite of cameras to provide contextual information and a robotic arm with a high definition 3D microscope and mini-corer to select and drill rock samples. Additional chemical and mineralogical analyses will be collected with handheld spectrometers. The rover as been built by Canadian robotics giant MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates (MDA).
As part of the collaboration, the Western-led science team will share their data and lessons learned with CSA to better inform future exploration projects while investigating the geology of this unique site.
