Schiaparelli EDM (Entry, Descent and Landing Demonstrator Module)

ExoMars 2016 — Schiaparelli

Agency

ESA / Roscosmos

Launched

2016-03-14

Landed

Never landed

Mass

577 kg

Technical Details

Agency	ESA / Roscosmos
Country	🇪🇺 Europe
Landing Site	Meridiani Planum (~-2°N, 6°W) — crashed
Power System	Batteries (short-lived technology demonstrator)
Mass	577 kg

Key Findings

1.Entry and descent systems partially successful — heatshield and parachute performed correctly through the initial phases
2.Failure traced to an IMU saturation event that caused the onboard computer to calculate a negative altitude, triggering premature parachute jettison at ~3.7 km altitude
3.Retro-rockets fired for only ~3 seconds instead of the required ~30 seconds, leaving the lander at altitude with essentially no deceleration
4.Crashed at an estimated 300+ km/h, creating a new impact crater subsequently imaged by MRO CTX
5.Post-accident investigation drove a major EDL software redesign for the Rosalind Franklin rover (currently targeting 2028 launch)

Mission Outcome

Schiaparelli was lost on October 19, 2016 when an IMU saturation event corrupted its altitude estimate, causing premature parachute release and an uncontrolled impact with the surface. Despite the loss of the lander, the mission's primary objective of testing the ExoMars EDL system was largely met through telemetry captured by the Trace Gas Orbiter. Lessons learned directly informed the software architecture for the Rosalind Franklin rover's landing system.

Sources

[1] ESA — retrieved 2026-06-01
[2] NASA NSSDCA — retrieved 2026-06-01

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