robotic drill to collect samples 1 meter deep

quarrying bid to transfer the sample to the MS-LIT instrument for analysis

6 wheels for the rover to allow maneuvering in the Martian terrain

MS-LIT, REMS, + camera data sent back to the International Space Station (ISS) via antenna

powered by plutonium decay, lithium ion batteries, + solar panels

volume constraint 61cm x 71cm x 96cm (24in x 28in x 38in)

mass constraint of 180 kg (400 lbs)

budget of $100M (100,000,000) or less

Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer (MOMA) ┈ which is a machine developed by the European Space Agency and the Russian Spacy Agency, with significant contributions from NASA. The MOMA instrument can detect a wide variety of small and large organic molecules, such as enzymes, lipids, and others. In particular, the MOMA-MS LIT (MOMA Mass Spectrometer Linear Ion Trap) instrument will be used to perform the Laser Desorption mode.

Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS), which provides data about the weather surrounding the rover. The sensors on the REMS are able to detect changes and measurements about the wind, temperature, pressure, and humidity. With this information, it could teach scientists and engineers more about the present and future habitability conditions on Mars.

Once reaching a safe battery level, HOPE will use the onboard drilling arm to first make contact with the Martian surface, and then drill approximately one meter into the Martian soil. After drilling and collecting the sample, the coring drill bit will be able to collect it.

An instrumental part of the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer (MOMA) will be used to analyze the samples collected. To assist with this, a robotic arm, positioned on the MS-LIT (part of the whole MOMA) base, will take the sample from the tip of the drill and place it in a metal plate (similar to the watch plates used in chemistry labs) in front of the MS-LIT.

The heart of the MOMA mass spectrometer subsystem is a miniaturized linear ion trap (LIT) that supports two distinct modes of operation to detect: volatile and semi-volatile, low-to-moderate mass organics via pyrolysis coupled with gas chromatography mass spectrometry more refractory, moderate-to-high mass compounds via laser desorption (LDMS) at ambient Mars pressures.

Once the sample is in the metallic plate, a second robotic arm with a laser incorporated will vaporize the sample. Using Laser Desorption Mode, a beam of energetic light will concentrate its energy in a single spot that rapidly evaporates a portion of the sample releasing potential large organic molecules.]{#d0d0d0}

The laser shot also ionizes some of the molecules, allowing the vapor to head directly to the linear ion trap (LIT). For this part, a vacuum machine, placed on top of the MS-LIT, will be used to move the vapor from the metallic plate into the LIT.

This vacuum has two purposes, one is to absorb the vapor from the plate and head it to the LIT, and the other one is to eject neutral molecules before these reach the LIT, while the remaining ions are sent to the detector to determine their chemical makeup.

Laser desorption will enable MOMA to detect long molecules like lipids, the building blocks of cell membranes, and other organic molecules that then will be used to concretely conclude if life exists on Mars or if this once existed in this “dead planet.”

Alongside the MOMA, the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station or REMS will be riding on board as well. The REMS consists of two “boom” shaped devices and a box-shaped deck device, all with their own important sensors and detectors.

The first boom, located on the side of the rover, facing the forward direction, contains a set of wind sensors located on the tip of the boom, a ground temperature sensor located below the boom, and an air temperature sensor located inside the body of the device.

Boom two is located on the same side of the rover as boom one but facing the opposite direction. Boom two contains a set of wind sensors on the end of the boom similar to boom one, a humidity sensor located below the boom, and the same air temperature sensor found in boom one as well.

The box-shaped detector located on the deck of the chassis will be used to detect UV radiation levels in the locations that HOPE travels to.

Finally, there will be a pressure sensor built into the chassis of the rover connected by a small filtered tube that will give information on atmospheric changes in the external environment.

The REMS is limited to operate in environments that are -130 °C to +70 °C to minimize power consumption. During operation, REMS will record five minutes of data at 1 HZ for each sensor, every hour of every day. This system will wake up, operate, store data, and shut down completely independently from the rest of the rover regardless of the rover's state of operation.

Designed to allow researchers up to 3 hours total of data collection each day, REMS enables pre-scheduled observation periods with a length of up to one extra hour to be designated by the science team to be available in order to maximize important data collection and unique event observation. Finally, if enabled, the REMS has implemented a simple algorithm allowing the rover to lengthen some of the regular observations in the event of unique atmospheric encounters.