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Nature: The first joint mission to Mars of the European Space Agency and the Russian space agency Roscosmos launched earlier today from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Scheduled to reach the Red Planet in October, the first two elements of the ExoMars mission consist of an orbiter to study methane in the atmosphere and a lander to study the planet’s surface. The mission continues in 2018 with the launch of a Mars rover that will drill into the planet's surface to look for organic matter. The ExoMars mission will test not only the two space agencies’ landing and other technologies but also their ability to work together on such an ambitious project.
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Collaborative European–Russian mission launches toward Mars Free
14 March 2016