Europe has formally joined the race to Mars with the launch of its Mars Express Satellite, a giant project in which DNV is also playing a part.

On June 2, the European Space Agency launched Mars Express, its first mission to the red planet, Mars, from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Once the Mars Express reaches Mars in December 2003, the mission’s main objective is to search for sub-surface water from the Martian orbit. The spacecraft’s landing probe, Beagle 2, will then separate and descend to the surface, where it will deploy its scientific instruments to search for traces of life, past or present, on Mars. Data collected by both the orbiting spacecraft and the landing probe will be temporarily stored onboard Mars Express and when possible - transmitted back to Earth. The mission is planned to last until 2007.

DNV has been responsible for the reliability, availability, maintainability and safety tasks at system level for the Mars Express Spacecraft.

The 400-million-kilometre (250-million-mile) trip should see Beagle transmit its first signal from the surface of the red planet on Christmas Day 2003.