Mars fascinates scientists because of its similarity to Earth, and it fascinates the public because our myth of "Martians" is a vision of life beyond Earth. The Mars 62 continues with the launch of a robot vehicle by UK scientists. It’s part of a project to build an "autonomous robotic scientist" to 63 the Martian suce and is key to the European Space Agency’s 2011 ExoMars .
The six-wheeled vehicle housing a myriad of scientific 65 and detectors is the Mars rover, nicknamed "Bridget". Astrium, an EADS company, are 66 the ExoMars rover prototype and coordinating its 67 with other UK-based institutions.
Searching for a 68 similar to that found on Mars, the team took the rover to El Teide National Park in Tenerife. Lester Waugh, leading the EADS Astrium team, explains, "The rover’s not waterproof so the conditions need to be dry as any moisture affects the way the sand 69 under the wheels."
Solar panels will supply power and radioisotope(放射性同位素 ) heater units will help it withstand the cold on Mars. The team is optimizing the performance of the wheels, suspension, the drive system, 70 it doesn’t dig itself in on tricky terrain.
Taking 71 to twenty minutes for radio signals to reach Earth demands a powerful 72 system to allow the rover to operate 73 so they are also developing next generation computer software 74 .
The rover will land on Mars packed to capacity 75 scientific gadgets designed to be as light and as small as possible. The 76 development time is essential for rigorous testing, as Waugh explains," 77 we put things in space we have to make sure that they’ll 78 the radiation environment, the 79 of heat and cold. Our science 80 is crucial, and malfunctions may affect that. The more science we get back the better 81 there is for spending more money on planetary exploration.\