Five years of Mainz technology on Mars

On 4 January 2004, NASA's rover 'Spirit' landed safely on Mars after a seven-month voyage through space. Three weeks later, its twin 'Opportunity' also touched down unharmed on the red planet. Both these rovers were carrying investigational instruments constructed in Mainz. The miniaturised Moessbauer Spectrometer MIMOS II, which was developed at the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry of Mainz University, and the alpha particle x-ray spectrometer (APXS) supplied by the Max Planck Institute (MPI) of Chemistry in Mainz have made important contributions towards the marked success of this NASA double mission. It was initially assumed that the two exploration vehicles would only manage to survive for a few months on the surface of Mars. Almost five years have passed since their landing - and they are still operational! On 27 January 2009, the five-year anniversary of the successful landings is to be celebrated at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz. This is to be a public event, and everyone is welcome to attend.

'We are all still surprised that Spirit and Opportunity are continuing to transmit data back to us from Mars. Our body of information on and picture of the red planet are continuing to grow,' said Dr Goestar Klingelhoefer of Mainz University. Klingelhoefer developed the miniaturised Moessbauer spectrometer, and he and his team spent considerable time at the NASA control centre in Pasadena, California. With MIMOS II, it is now possible to directly conduct mineralogical analyses of the iron content of rock and soil samples taken from the Martian surface. The information gathered shows that there was previously water present on Mars and provides clues as to the possible nature of the water.

'The two instruments built in Mainz have provided important input during the two rover missions: This is the first time that chemical and mineralogical data has been obtained from samples taken from the surface of the red planet,' said Dr Johannes Brueckner of the Max Planck Institute of Chemistry. The institute was responsible for the development and construction of the alpha particle x-ray spectrometer (APXS). The APXS analyses the chemical composition of samples taken from the surface of Mars, and many of its measurement results were quite surprising. Mars may now appear to be a dead and arid desert planet, but it has an animated geological history, and there is even evidence that water was once present on Mars.

On Tuesday, 27 January 2009, the successful rover landings and the five years of scientific investigation of the planet, to which Mainz has made a significant contribution, will be celebrated. Following an address delivered by the President of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Professor Dr Georg Krausch, the scientists involved will talk about their work and experience. Dr Johannes Brueckner of the Max Planck Institute of Chemistry in Mainz, Dr Goestar Klingelhoefer, Iris Fischer and Dr Christian Schroeder (all of Mainz University) will present the progress and highlights of the Mars mission so far. There will also be an invited guest speaker who will give a talk on the history of the planet Mars and compare this with that of the earth. The event (after which drinks will be served) will commence at 5 PM and will be held in the new large chemistry auditorium C01, Duesbergweg 10-14 on the university campus.