ESA - Robotic Exploration of Mars - ExoMars dosing station prototype

The ExoMars dosing station, a part of the Sample Preparation and Distribution System (SPDS) which is designed to transport Martian soil samples collected by the drill to the instruments inside the ExoMars rover, was tested in conditions simulating Martian gravity during a parabolic flight campaign that ran from 7 to 9 June 2011.

This photograph shows the vacuum chamber containing the ExoMars dosing station prototype in the Novespace laboratory facilities in Bordeaux, France during the preparations for this parabolic flight campaign.

The experiment consists of a vacuum chamber (0.6 m in diameter and 0.55 m in height) where the dosing station prototype is housed, a vacuum pump and the related electronics system mounted on a rack (1.5 m in length, 0.63 m in height and 0.66 m in width). The set-up also provides a dust-free environment with a dust filter and a cooling system, attached to the side of the rack.