French tooling manufacturer Loiretech has delivered a mock-up of the ExoMars heat shield to ArianeGroup’s facilities in Saint-Médard-en-Jalles.
In April 2024, the European Space Agency awarded a €522 million contract to a Thales Alenia Space-led consortium to restart development of the ExoMars mission, which will carry the Rosalind Franklin rover to the surface of Mars. As part of the consortium, ArianeGroup is responsible for the front shield and thermal protection element of the aeroshell, designed to protect the rover during entry into the Martian atmosphere.
Although ArianeGroup has not publicly commented on its ExoMars development work, a social media update from French tooling manufacturer Loiretech on 17 July indicated that it had delivered a mock-up of the ExoMars heat shield to the company. According to Loiretech, the mock-up will be used by ArianeGroup for the initial qualification of the heat shield, onto which thermal protection tiles will be installed. Although not explicitly stated, the mock-up will likely be used for fit verification tests, assembly trials, and the assessment of thermal tile mounting procedures.
Despite supplying the initial mock-up of the heat shield structure, ArianeGroup ExoMars Programme Manager Jérôme Bertrand confirmed in a comment on the Loiretech update that the company will not be responsible for the flight model of the component.
The ExoMars mission is currently scheduled for launch in 2028. Once on the Martian surface, the rover will deploy a drill developed by Leonardo to extract samples from depths of up to two metres. This depth is critical, as it lies beneath the layer of soil sterilised by surface radiation, offering a better chance of uncovering preserved organic material.