NASA scales back hunt for life on Mars

The Exomars rover was going to drill into Martian soil to look for life (Image: ESA)

Is there life on Mars? We might not find out for some time. The search has hit a major hurdle because NASA has cancelled plans for ambitious new missions to the Red Planet.

NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) were planning a pair of joint missions to Mars that could have made important strides in the search for past or present life.

The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, which was to launch in 2016, would have followed up on hints of methane discovered in the Martian atmosphere by previous missions. The gas is of particular interest as it is commonly produced by microbes on Earth.

The ExoMars rover, which had been slated for launch in 2018, would have drilled beneath the Martian surface to get samples of pristine material, possibly including complex carbon-based molecules that could have provided clues to past Martian life.

But NASA has told ESA that it can no longer afford to participate in those missions, agency officials confirmed today.

Russian rescue?

The missions may end up being cancelled or at least drastically scaled back, although ESA is reportedly trying to bring the Russian space agency on board instead.

NASA administrator Charles Bolden and other officials explained in press briefings today that they had to make tough choices in crafting NASA's budget for 2013.

The White House's proposed 2013 budget for NASA was released on Monday 13 February along with those of all other departments and agencies.

If approved by Congress, the budget will give NASA $17.7 billion in 2013, about the same as it got in 2012, but around $1 billion less than it had been projecting for 2013 when making plans over the last few years.

No more flagship

The Mars budget was slashed as a result, with NASA's contribution to the flagship ExoMars mission the main casualty.

"We just could not do another flagship right now," Bolden said. "It was not in the cards … in these very difficult fiscal times."

NASA still hopes to mount a less costly mission to Mars in 2018, but it might not land on the surface. The agency has not specified exactly where it would go, but orbiters tend to be less expensive than rovers.

The proposed budget also confirms that NASA plans to continue building the James Webb Space Telescope with a launch targeted for 2018, and continue payments to private space companies like SpaceX to help them develop space taxis that could take crew to the International Space Station.

NASA wants $830 million for space taxi development in 2013. It asked for a similar amount in 2012, but Congress cut it by more than half, to about $400 million.

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