Experimental and Numerical Characterization of the Flow Around the Mars 2020 Rover

The investigation of the environmental factors in Mars atmosphere is one of the issues of the NASA’s Mars Exploration Program about the potential for life on Mars. The future Mars 2020 rover will transport the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer dedicated to obtain meteorological data, as well as other objectives, about wind speed and direction. High-quality wind data are required to build mathematical models of the Mars climate; therefore, powerful techniques are necessary to eliminate flow perturbations produced by the rover presence. The aim of this Paper is the characterization of the flow around the Mars 2020 rover, providing a deep insight into the environmental interaction of the Mars wind with the rover. A comparative study between numerical simulations versus wind-tunnel experimental results is conducted trying to investigate the influence of the rover on the flow measured by the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer wind sensors. This study is addressed to perform an assessment of the reliability of numerical methods in the prediction of this kind of flow in Martian conditions, evaluating its capability to be used in the future to correct wind data coming from the Mars 2020 rover mission. The advancements in the numerical methods as compared with experimental results implies an advancement on the calibration methods in the space wind sensor instrumentation carried in the Mars 2020 rover.