The space agencies of America, Europe, China, and the United Arab Emirates all plan launches of unmanned Martian probes. Each will have different ambitions.  

NASA already drives robots on Mars, but its rover will carry a helicopter drone that could become the first extraterrestrial aircraft. It will also test a device to convert abundant carbon dioxide into scarce oxygen, which could help future astronauts breathe, or could be used to make rocket fuel. 

Both the European and Chinese space agencies must prove that they have learned lessons from recent failures to reach Mars. 

The Europeans plan to drill an unprecedented two meters into the planet’s surface to search for fossilized signs of life. 

The UAE’s mission, developed with American help and to be launched on a Japanese rocket, will be an interplanetary first for the Arab world.