Infrared Spectrometer for ExoMars
spectrometer designed for the Rosalind Franklin rover, but later descoped
Infrared Spectrometer for ExoMars (ISEM) was an infrared spectrometer for remote sensing designed to be part of the science payload on board the European Space Agency's Rosalind Franklin rover, tasked to search for biosignatures and biomarkers on Mars. ISEM would provide context assessment of the surface mineralogy in the vicinity of the Rosalind Franklin rover for selection of potential astrobiological targets. The Principal Investigator was Oleg Korablev from the Russian Space Research Institute (IKI). The instrument's use on the rover was cancelled, together with other Russian contributions to the project, after Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and it was replaced by the Welsh-built ENFYS.
Overview
The Infrared Spectrometer for ExoMars (ISEM) was being developed by the Russian Space Research Institute (IKI). It would be the first instance of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) observations done from the Mars surface. The instrument would be installed on the Rosalind Franklin rover's mast to measure reflected solar radiation in the near infrared range for context assessment of the surface mineralogy in the vicinity of Rosalind Franklin for selection of potential astrobiological targets. As the number of samples obtained with the drill will be limited, the selection of high-value sites for drilling will be crucial. Working with PanCam (a high-resolution panoramic camera), ISEM would aid in the selection of potential targets, especially water-bearing minerals, for close-up investigations and drilling sites. ISEM could detect, if present, organic compounds, including evolving trace gases such as hydrocarbons like methane in the Martian atmosphere.
Objectives
The stated science objectives of ISEM were:
Geological investigation and study a composition of Martian soils in the uppermost few millimeters of the surface.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Infrared Spectrometer for ExoMars” is spectrometer designed for the Rosalind Franklin rover, but later descoped. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Infrared, Spectrometer and ExoMars, not as a finished interpretation.
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This entry incorporates text from “Infrared Spectrometer for ExoMars” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.