ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover by European Space Agency: status and timeline

ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover

Search for signs of life where they are most likely preserved: below the radiation-scorched Martian surface, in an area that once held water.

PilotStage 3 of 5

Rover built, lander in test, NASA braking engines delivered. Falcon Heavy launch from late 2028.

Updated 16 Apr 2026Checked 11 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · Landing platform drop and sled tests

Planned launch with RussiaMissed · Sep 2022Missed.
ESA awards Thales Alenia Space EUR 522M to restart9 Apr 2024Complete.
NASA-ESA agreement on US contributions16 May 2024Complete.
NASA support project approved; Falcon Heavy chosen16 Apr 2026Complete.
NASA delivers four braking engines to Airbus UKJun 2026Complete.
Landing platform drop and sled testsTarget 2026Current milestone.
Launch from Kennedy Space CenterTarget 2028+64 mo~~originally Sep 2022~~Not yet reached.
Landing at Oxia PlanumTarget 2030+84 mo~~originally 2023~~Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Upcoming

2026Landing platform drop and sled tests (next)
2028Launch from Kennedy Space Center+64 mo~~originally Sep 2022~~
2028Rosalind Franklin launch on Falcon Heavy (no earlier than late 2028)
2030Landing at Oxia Planum+84 mo~~originally 2023~~

Current obstacles

Dependence on NASA budgetsNASA supplies the launch, braking engines and heaters. The White House's 2027 budget request proposed ending that support; Congress must restore it.
Landing with new hardwareEngine cut-off timing and tipping on sloped ground are risks for the new lander; drop and sled tests on Earth feed computer models of Mars landings.

Physics limits

Short launch windowsEarth and Mars line up for an efficient transfer only about every 26 months, so any delay that misses a window costs more than two years.
Thin air makes landing hardMars's atmosphere is about 1% as thick as Earth's: enough to heat a capsule but too thin for parachutes alone, so landers need rocket engines in the last seconds.
Life signs are ambiguousMany organic molecules can also form without life, so even a clear detection may not prove biology without more context.

How it works

4 parts

Drill

Digging below the radiation

Cosmic radiation and oxidants destroy organic molecules near the surface. A drill reaching 2 m samples soil where they may survive.

Lab

An onboard chemistry lab

Samples go to instruments including the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer, whose NASA mass spectrometer weighs molecules to spot possible building blocks of life.

Landing

A European lander

An Airbus-built platform with four shock-absorbing legs replaces Russia's cancelled lander; NASA supplies its braking engines.

Site

Oxia Planum

The rover will land at Oxia Planum, an area that once held water, and is planned to drive about 4 km over at least seven months.

Spec sheet

Spec	ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover
Rover mass	about 310 kg^R (reported)
Drill depth	up to 2 m^R (reported)
Science payload	about 26 kg^R (reported)
Planned surface mission	at least 7 months^R (reported)
Falcon Heavy launch (NASA)	$175.7M^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Update log

2 updates

Thu 16 Apr

Major: NASA approves its part of the Rosalind Franklin mission and picks Falcon Heavy for a late-2028 launchPressPartnership

Wed 21 Jan

Minor: ESA drop-tests a full-scale mock-up of the ExoMars landing platformPressTest

About European Space Agency

The team behind ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover

European Space Agency

Hera mission, Copernicus, ECMWF, planetary defence

ESA is the European intergovernmental space agency with 23 member states. It operates Earth observation systems, the International Space Station, deep-space missions and the Ariane rocket family. The Hera mission is ESA's planetary-defence follow-up to NASA's DART impact test.

Develops Ariane rockets and Copernicus Earth-observation satellites; participates in the International Space Station.
Hera mission to asteroid Didymos measures how NASA's 2022 DART impact deflected it, validating planetary defence.
Multinational agency with 23 European member states; 2026 budget €8.26 billion.

esa.int (opens esa.int)Company profile →

Founded: 197551 yrs
Headquarters: France
Status: Government
Valuation: government
Works in: SpaceflightMoon & deep spaceComputing
Coverage: 4 programs · 10 updateslatest 1d agochecked 11 Oct
Partners: NASA (opens nasa.gov)
Suppliers: Airbus Defence and Space (opens airbus.com)Thales Alenia Space (opens thalesgroup.com)

Spec

ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover

Rover mass

about 310 kg^R (reported)

Drill depth

up to 2 m^R (reported)

Science payload

about 26 kg^R (reported)

Planned surface mission

at least 7 months^R (reported)

Falcon Heavy launch (NASA)

$175.7M^R (reported)