ExoMars is a dual mission led by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) in collaboration with ESA and Roscosmos, focusing on Mars exploration.

•Mission Responsibility: ESA / ROSCOSMOS

•Launch Date: March 14, 2016 – September/October 2022

Italy, through ASI, is the primary supporter of the ExoMars mission, contributing 40% of the total investment.

The mission is divided into two phases. In the first phase, launched on March 14, 2016, the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) reached Mars after nearly seven months of travel. Its primary objectives are to investigate the presence of methane and other gases in the atmosphere and to search for clues of active life. This phase also included the landing of a descent module (EDM), named Schiaparelli in honor of the Italian astronomer Giovanni V. Schiaparelli, who created one of the first accurate maps of Mars.

The EDM detached from the probe on October 16, 2016, successfully completing all planned operations until the final descent phase on October 19, when an anomaly in one of the control systems caused the module to crash on Mars.

ExoMars was designed to demonstrate Europe’s capability to perform a controlled landing on the Martian surface, operate a rover equipped for soil analysis, and access the subsoil to collect samples for in-situ analysis. The mission aims to investigate traces of past and present life on Mars and to characterize the planet’s geochemistry.