This video shows the deployment of the ramps for the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover mission during a confidence test at Astronika facilities in Poland.  


The three-metre-long ramps deploy automatically in an operation that will take a maximum of five minutes on Mars.  

Rosalind’s lander has two sets of ramps that the rover will use to drive down from the platform onto the martian surface. This will be one of the mission’s most nerve-racking moments after landing on Mars. 

The landing platform features one pair of ramps at the front and another at the back. While the rover is designed to negotiate steep inclines, ground control on Earth will decide which route offers the safest descent. The ramps are made of aluminium and have honeycomb pattern to improve the grip with the rover’s six wheels. 

This confidence test demonstrated that the ramps deploy reliably and validated the robustness of the hold-down release mechanism.  

Members of Astronika and ESA teams pose next to the ramps after the tests in Poland. Credits: Astronika