NASA’s New Mars Aircraft Concept MAGGIE Enters Feasibility Study funded by NASA – Latest Mars Exploration Mission Update

NASA is developing a new aircraft concept called the Mars Aerial and Ground Global Intelligent Explorer (MAGGIE) as the latest effort in the Mars exploration mission. The probe is expected to help answer long-standing scientific questions about the presence of methane in the Martian atmosphere, which could be a sign of life.

Quoted from space.com (12/5), According to NASA sources, MAGGIE is still in the conceptual stage with a nine-month NASA-funded feasibility study. “MAGGIE is designed to fly at an altitude of 1,000 meters from the surface of Mars and has a great potential to detect methane,” said Gecheng Zha, MAGGIE principal investigator and professor at the University of Miami.

MAGGIE’s main mission is to identify and study the amount of methane, which is a difficult-to-detect gas that has variable concentrations on Mars. “We used patented technology including an air compressor that increases lift and reduces drag, allowing MAGGIE to operate more efficiently in the thin atmosphere of Mars,” explained Zha.

Methane, known as a biosignature gas, has been detected intermittently by the Curiosity Rover mission since 2012, but the consistency and source of the gas remains a mystery. MAGGIE, with its advanced capabilities, is expected to detect not only methane but also other transient phenomena such as the presence of liquid water.

Other development plans for MAGGIE include phase two of NASA’s Advanced Innovative Concepts (NIAC) program which will focus on technical development and deeper scientific studies. “The next step will involve a variety of studies, from studying the Martian magnetic field to taking high-definition photos of surface features,” Zha said.

The MAGGIE project follows the success of the Ingenuity helicopter, the first heavy flying vehicle on Mars, which completed 72 flights before breaking down in January 2024. It is hoped that a vehicle like MAGGIE will open a new chapter in the presence of research Mars and perhaps provide answers to some of the biggest mysteries on the planet, the red.