Mars Micro Orbiter (MMO) is a spacecraft mission concept that would place a small and inexpensive satellite in orbit around the planet Mars to study some aspects of the Mars atmosphere in visible and infrared wavelengths.
The orbiter study will undergo a preliminary design review in March 2018, potentially launching as a secondary payload on another mission in 2020.
In April 2015, NASA's Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration (SIMPLEx) program requested proposals for interplanetary CubeSat investigations, and received 22 submissions.[1] The MMO was not selected for launch, but in 2017 it was awarded grants[2][3] for further technology development.[1]
In 2015, the concept considered a 6U CubeSat with potential to also serve as an orbital communication relay for Mars surface-based missions,[4] and by 2017 it had evolved to a 12U CubeSat;[5] that is about 16 kg, and measuring 20×20×30 cm. The orbiter study will undergo a preliminary design review in March 2018,[5] potentially launching as a secondary payload on another mission[5] in 2020.[2]
The Principal Investigator is Michael Malin, from Malin Space Science Systems.[4][5]
The MMO would study the Mars atmosphere in visible and infrared wavelengths from Mars orbit.[4] The science measurements include: [4]
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