Learn about how Europe’s space capital, Toulouse assisted Nasa Perseverance rover landing on Mars

Perseverance made its final descent to the Red Planet on 18^th February to search for traces of life and thanks to Toulouse’s leading role in space applications, Perseverance is exploring Mars using a French SuperCam instrument – designed to analyse Martian soil and possibly identify primitive life. The SpaceCam will also be jointly operated from the CNES’s field centre in Toulouse, Europe’s space capital.

More details about the SuperCam and how space lovers can learn more about Toulouse’s space history are below.

Toulouse’s Space History

Located in south-west France and home to the European headquarters of Intel and CNES’s Toulouse Space Centre (CST), the largest space centre in Europe, Toulouse has been at the forefront of France’s space and aviation industry since the early 1900s. Many components for international space programmes have been developed there, as well as important aircrafts, including Concorde. Thanks to the development of the spatial industry in Toulouse and the experience acquired since the creation of CNES, the French space agency in 1961 many companies are now key-players of the New Space market. A pioneer city in the space sector, Toulouse is home to the world’s second largest space budget of £1.7 billion.

With over 400 companies in the space sector, covering a quarter of the European space workplace, Toulouse gathers a rich ecosystem of suppliers, top level engineering schools and laboratories as well as two world leaders: Airbus Défense and Space and Thales Alenia Space. The whole space value chain is covered from design to manufacturing but Toulouse has taken a leading role for space applications including earth observation through images, radar for climate change and weather forecast.

Thanks to this know-how and level of expertise, Perseverance, NASA’s latest rover, is exploring Mars using French SuperCam instrument. The objective of the Mars mission is to search for traces of past life by studying the soil of the red planet. To do this, the SuperCam combines five techniques to carry out surveys to better understand Martian soil and identify a possible indication of primitive life.

About the SuperCam

The SuperCam was developed jointly by a consortium of French research laboratories and the LANL (Los Alamos National Laboratory), with a contribution from the University of Valladolid, Spain. The CNES has overall responsibility for the French contribution to SuperCam, built in partnership with the French national scientific research centre CNRS and universities and engineering schools. The instrument is operated alternately from LANL and the Mars 2020 French Operations Centre for Science and Exploration (FOCSE) at CNES’s field centre in Toulouse.

It’s not the first time that Toulouse has been at the centre of Martian news. The Curiosity robot, central piece of technology which was designed to explore the Gale crate on Mars in 2012 was programmed and piloted by engineers in Toulouse.

To learn more, please visit: https://www.invest-in-toulouse.com/Toulouse_European_Capital_Space

Out of this world – trips to Toulouse

La Cité de l’Espace celebrates Mars in 2021

Those interested to learn more about Toulouse’s space culture can explore to infinity and beyond at La Cité de l’Espace. In 2021, the museum will opens its doors to an exhibition celebrating the ‘Red Planet.’ As an extension of the existing exhibition, ‘Moon: Episode II’ which retraces man’s first steps on the Moon and the challenges of space travel, the Cité has added a new area focusing on ‘Martian rovers’. Space enthusiasts shouldn’t miss the chance to take a seat in the martian arena to admire the life-size robots that are sent to Mars and experience what they can do. Visitors can get involved in family workshops and demonstrations on how space travel works. For families travelling with children, and anyone interested in space travel, this sprawling futuristic park is located just 30-minutes from the city. Tickets start from £14 per person or £12 per person for families of four to six people.  For more information, visit en.cite-espace.com/

Images can be downloaded here: https://www.presse.media.cite-espace.com/search/keyword?thes=16&word=380&name=Mars

WHERE TO STAY

Located in the heart of Toulouse close by to the museums, shops and attractions, the beautiful La Cour Des Consuls et Spa Toulouse – MGallery collection is a little slice of luxury in the city centre. With a magnificent 18th century courtyard, ‘La Terrasse by CC’ has become a popular meeting place for locals and holidaymakers alike. With 32-bedrooms, this boutique property offers comfortable rooms and fantastic dining options. Those staying should relax in the courtyard with a cocktail and try a selection of tapas from the menu, which was created Michellin-starred chef Thomas Vonderscher. On weekends, this inner-city gem is the ideal setting for brunch with friends. For more information or to book, visit www.la-cour-des-consuls-hotel-and-spa-toulouse-mgallery-collection.at-hotels.com/fr/

For more information on Toulouse please visit: www.toulouse-visit.com