EPSC Abstracts
Vol. 17, EPSC2024-927, 2024, updated on 03 Jul 2024
https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-927
Europlanet Science Congress 2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

PanCam: the ‘science eyes’ of the Rosalind Franklin (ExoMars 2028) rover

Andrew Coates1,2, Nicole Schmitz3, Matt Balme4, Matt Gunn5, and the Rosalind Franklin PanCam team*
Andrew Coates et al.
  • 1Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Dorking, UK
  • 2Centre for Planetary Science at UCL/Birkbeck, London, UK
  • 3Institute of Planetary Research, German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Berlin, Germany
  • 4Department of Earth Sciences, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
  • 5Department of Physics, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK
  • *A full list of authors appears at the end of the abstract

The scientific objectives of the Rosalind Franklin (ExoMars) 2028 rover are designed to answer several key questions in the search for life on Mars by drilling 2m under the surface. The PanCam instrument, with the other context instruments, will set the geological and morphological context for the mission. Here, we will describe the PanCam scientific objectives in geology, atmospheric science and 3D vision. We also describe the design of PanCam as delivered to the rover. PanCam includes a stereo pair of Wide Angle Cameras (WACs), each of which has an 11-position  filter wheel for geology and atmospheric science, and a High Resolution Camera for close up investigations. The cameras are housed in an optical bench at the top of the rover’s mast, which also includes the electrical interface via the PanCam Interface Unit (PIU). PanCam also includes a calibration target, fiducial markers and a rover inspection mirror. We will describe how PanCam will work with Enfys and other context instruments to help decide where to drill. We also discuss some results from PanCam testing during field trials.

 

Rosalind Franklin PanCam team:

A.J. Coates (1,2), N. Schmitz (3), M.Balme (4), M. Gunn (5), M. Carter (1), C.E. Leff,(1,2), B.Whiteside(1), T.Hunt(1), J.-L. Josset (6), G. Paar (7), E. Hauber (3), C.R. Cousins (8), P. Grindrod (9), J.C. Bridges (10), S. Gupta (11), I.A. Crawford (12), P. Irwin (13), R. Stabbins (9), D. Tirsch (3), 3 J.L. Vago (14), M. Caballo-Perucha (7), G.R. Osinski (15) & the PanCam Team (1) Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Dorking, UK, (2) Centre for Planetary Science at UCL/Birkbeck, London, UK, (3)Institute of Planetary Research, German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Berlin, Germany, (4) Department of Earth Sciences, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK, (5) Department of Physics, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK, (6) Space Exploration Institute, Neuchâtel, Switzerland, (7) Joanneum Research, Graz, Austria, (8) Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK, (9) Department of Earth Sciences Natural History Museum, London, UK, (10) Space Research Centre, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK, (11) Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, UK, (12) Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, UK, (13) Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK, (14) European Space Agency, Noordwijk, the Netherlands, (15) Centre for Planetary Science & Exploration, U. Western Ontario, London, Canada

How to cite: Coates, A., Schmitz, N., Balme, M., and Gunn, M. and the Rosalind Franklin PanCam team: PanCam: the ‘science eyes’ of the Rosalind Franklin (ExoMars 2028) rover, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-927, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-927, 2024.