Trace Gas Orbiter
Artist's illustration of ExoMars 2016 | |||||||||||
| Mission type | Mars orbiter | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | ESA · Roscosmos | ||||||||||
| COSPAR ID | 2016-017A | ||||||||||
| SATCAT no. | 41388 | ||||||||||
| Website | http://exploration.esa.int/jump.cfm?oid=46475 | ||||||||||
| Mission duration | Planned: 7 years Elapsed: 9 years, 3 months, 4 days | ||||||||||
| Spacecraft properties | |||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Thales Alenia Space | ||||||||||
| Launch mass | 4,332 kg | ||||||||||
| Payload mass | Instruments: 113.8 kg (251 lb) Schiaparelli: 577 kg (1,272 lb) | ||||||||||
| Dimensions | 3.2 × 2 × 2 m (10.5 × 6.6 × 6.6 ft) | ||||||||||
| Power | ~2000 W | ||||||||||
| Start of mission | |||||||||||
| Launch date | 14 March 2016, 09:31 UTC | ||||||||||
| Rocket | Proton-M/Briz-M | ||||||||||
| Launch site | Baikonur 200/39 | ||||||||||
| Contractor | Khrunichev | ||||||||||
| Orbital parameters | |||||||||||
| Reference system | Areocentric | ||||||||||
| Regime | Circular | ||||||||||
| Eccentricity | 0 | ||||||||||
| Periareion altitude | 400 km (250 mi) | ||||||||||
| Apoareion altitude | 400 km (250 mi) | ||||||||||
| Inclination | 74 degrees | ||||||||||
| Period | 2 hours | ||||||||||
| Epoch | Planned | ||||||||||
| Mars orbiter | |||||||||||
| Orbital insertion | 19 October 2016, 15:24 UTC | ||||||||||
| Transponders | |||||||||||
| Band | X band UHF band | ||||||||||
| Frequency | 390–450 MHz | ||||||||||
| TWTA power | 65 W | ||||||||||
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ESA mission insignia for the ExoMars 2016 launch, featuring the Trace Gas Orbiter (left) and Schiaparelli (right) ExoMars programme | |||||||||||
The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO or ExoMars Orbiter) is a collaborative project between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian Roscosmos agency that sent an atmospheric research orbiter and the Schiaparelli demonstration lander to Mars in 2016 as part of the European-led ExoMars programme. A key goal is to gain a better understanding of methane (CH4) and other trace gases present in the Martian atmosphere that could be evidence for possible biological activity.
The Trace Gas Orbiter delivered the Schiaparelli lander on 16 October 2016, which crashed on the surface due to a premature release of the parachute. TGO has been orbiting Mars since October 2016 and performing science observations of the planet since April 2018.
The ExoMars programme will continue with the Rosalind Franklin rover in 2028, which will search for biomolecules and biosignatures; the TGO will operate as the communication link for the lander and rover and provide communication for other Mars surface probes with Earth.