The WheelCams on the IDEFIX rover
IDEFIX, the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission Phobos rover, will be the first of its kind to attempt wheeled-locomotion on a low-gravity surface. The IDEFIX WheelCams, two cameras placed on the underside of the rover looking at the rover wheels, provide a unique opportunity to study the surface properties of Phobos, regolith behaviour on small-bodies and rover mobility in low-gravity. The information gained about Phobos' surface will be of high importance to the landing and sampling operations of the main MMX spacecraft, in addition to being valuable for understanding the surface processes and geological history of Phobos. Here we introduce the WheelCam science objectives, the instrument and the characterisation activities. We also discuss the on-going preparations linked to the analysis and interpretation of the WheelCam images on the surface of Phobos.
Authors
- Alexia Duchêne (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0385-5755)
- Hideaki Miyamoto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8013-6124)
- Stefan Barthelmes
- Adrien Maillard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4028-7424)
- O. S. Barnouin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3578-7750)
- Simon Tardivel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2483-9826)
- Colas Robin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2424-0039)
- Nicolas Théret
- Patrick Michel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0884-1993)
- Pierre Vernazza (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2564-6743)
- Damien Vivet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1909-5591)
- Olivier Groussin
- Julien Baroukh
- Cédric Virmontois (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9348-1565)
- Jean‐Baptiste Vincent (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6575-3079)
- Stephan Ulamec (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8856-4622)
- Cecily Sunday (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7538-7903)
- Naomi Murdoch (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9701-4075)
- L. Jordá (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8735-3308)
- Valérian Lalucaa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4083-5363)
- Alice Amsili
- Panos Delton
- Quentin Douaglin
- Jens Biele
- Jean Claude Bertrand
- Jessica Flahaut
- Christine Hartzel
- Fabien Buse
Institutions
- École Nationale de l’Aviation Civile (FR)
- Thales (Portugal) (PT)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- APLA Health (US)
- Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées (FR)
- Institut Superieur de l'Aeronautique et de l'Espace (ISAE-SUPAERO) (FR)
- Université Côte d'Azur (FR)
- Aix-Marseille Université (FR)
- Centre National d'Études Spatiales (FR)
- Office National d'Études et de Recherches Aérospatiales (FR)
- Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR) (DE)
- Centre de Recherches Pétrographiques et Géochimiques (FR)
- Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur (FR)
- National Higher French Institute of Aeronautics and Space (FR)
- Pathogénèse Bactérienne et Réponses Cellulaires
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- The University of Tokyo (JP)
- Université de Lorraine (FR)
- Université de Caen Normandie (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Progress in Earth and Planetary Science
- Published
- 2025-07-14
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s40645-025-00725-3
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Planetary Science and Exploration
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 4.62
Funders
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales