The new Mars probe will bear the name Italian astrophysics, and this is the estimate of the European Space Agency (ESA)

One of the vehicles that will be used in the ExoMars mission will be named after astrophysicist Amalia Ercoli Finzi, who will search for traces of past life on the Red Planet, as well as analyze the atmosphere and search for traces of water in the Earth’s interior.

Enter the second stage of the mission ExoMars; The first stage of the project, implemented by the European Space Agency and the Russian space agency “Roscosmos”, led to the placement of a satellite into orbit for atmospheric mapping, as well as the unfortunately unsuccessful landing of the Schiaparelli spacecraft. bandage.

the The second phase Instead, it involves more active exploration, with an exploration vehicle landing. The rover will have to explore the surface Martian For months, moving 70 meters each Mars day (or Mars day) collecting rock samples, searching for traces of past or present life.

Of this rover, named after British chemist Rosalind Franklin, there is a twin that will remain on Earth and will be used to simulate what the rover should perform on Mars. This will be called Amalia Ercole Fenzi, one of the leading Italian aeronautical engineers.

Ercole Fenzi was Head of the Department of Aeronautical Engineering at Milan Polytechnic; He was also responsible for supervising the drilling that pierced comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko as part of Rashid’s mission510 million km from our planet.

A life dedicated to space studies

Amalia Ercoli Finzi is one of the key figures in the aerospace sector not only in Italy, but also in the European Union; She is actually the Italian delegate of Horizon 2020Funding program for the establishment of the European Research Area, i.e. the integrated scientific research programs of the European Union.

Collaboration with the European Space Agency for Giotto’s missionThis made it possible to study Halley’s Comet and the most famous of them at close range commit The patrols, which can be analyzed at a distance of only 596 kilometers, obtain information of fundamental importance for research.

Today he collaborates with NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Italian Space Agency, on studies of the sustainability of life beyond our planet such as the Botanical Gardens on the Moon, which could be vital to human presence on our and on our satellite. The possibility of human travel to Mars.

The scientist said she was flattered and honored by this Recognition For a career that started very far away, she enrolled at the Polytechnic of Milan, which she was one of the first girls to enter, graduating in 1962 with a grade of 110 with distinction as she began teaching orbital mechanics.

Today, with the naming of one of the two roving vehicles that will lead to important discoveries in our knowledge of the Red Planet, we are witnessing a tribute to one of the most influential Italian figures in the research sector and the culmination of a long career of the… lady comets.