[[Home|🏠]] <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> [[Missions]] <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> ESCAPADE ## Mission Details **Customer:** [[NASA]], [[University of California Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory]] 🔗 https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/escapade ℹ️ [NASA ESCAPADE Page](https://science.nasa.gov/mission/escapade/) 📍 [ESCAPADE Blue Current Location](https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/solar-system/#/sc_escapade_blue) In 2021 Rocket Lab was awarded a subcontract by the [[University of California Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory]] (UCBSSL) to design two [[Explorer]] (then called Photon) spacecraft for a scientific mission to Mars. The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE) mission, led by [Rob Lillis at UCBSSL](https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-lillis-35ab943/), is a twin-spacecraft science mission that will orbit two spacecraft around Mars to understand the structure, composition, variability, and dynamics of Mars' unique hybrid magnetosphere. The mission will leverage its unique dual viewpoint on the Mars environment to explore how the solar wind strips atmosphere away from Mars to better understand how its climate has changed over time. ESCAPADE was developed under [NASA’s Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration (SIMPLEx)](https://soma.larc.nasa.gov/simplex/) program in the Science Mission Directorate (SMD). The mission is led by UCBSSL with spacecraft design provided by Rocket Lab. The two spacecraft were originally planned for launch in 2024 to Mars ridesharing aboard a [[NASA]]-provided commercial launch vehicle (New Glenn) but delays from [[Blue Origin]] pushed the mission to New Glenn's second launch on **November 13 2025**. EscaPADE is a twin-spacecraft [[⚖️ NASA Mission and Instrument Risk Classification#Class D|Class D]] mission dedicated to studying the transfer of solar wind energy and momentum through Mars’ unique hybrid magnetosphere and how it drives ion and sputtering escape. Graphic: University of California, Berkeley ![[Pasted image 20250702185920.png]] ## Launch 🚀 Launched on [New Glenn](https://www.blueorigin.com/new-glenn) Flight 2 NET November 13. New Glenn deployed two spacecraft on a modified interplanetary trajectory due to launching later than originally planned. NASA [paid Blue Origin ~$18-20 million for the launch](https://www.reuters.com/science/blue-origin-launches-new-glenn-rocket-companys-first-nasa-scale-science-mission-2025-11-13/). Delayed from 13 October 2024; it was originally intended to be launched on the debut flight of New Glenn. ## Spacecraft & Payloads #### x2 Identical [[Explorer]] spacecraft ![[Explorer#ESCAPADE]] ## Objectives ✅ Understand the processes controlling the structure of Mars’ hybrid magnetosphere and how it guides ion flows. ✅ Understand how energy and momentum is transported from the solar wind through Mars’ magnetosphere. ✅ Understand the processes controlling the flow of energy and matter into and out of the collisional atmosphere. ## News %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: start ``` table published as "Published" from "News" where contains(mission, [[ESCAPADE]]) sort published desc ``` %% | File | Published | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------ | | [[News/So you’re in space and on the way to Mars, what next.md\|So you’re in space and on the way to Mars, what next]] | December 01, 2025 | | [[News/Rocket Lab-Built Twin Spacecraft Begin Mars Journey for NASA and UC Berkeley’s ESCAPADE Mission.md\|Rocket Lab-Built Twin Spacecraft Begin Mars Journey for NASA and UC Berkeley’s ESCAPADE Mission]] | November 13, 2025 | | [[News/Rocket Lab’s Two Mars-Bound Spacecraft Arrive in Florida Ahead of Launch.md\|Rocket Lab’s Two Mars-Bound Spacecraft Arrive in Florida Ahead of Launch]] | September 22, 2025 | | [[News/Rocket Lab Ships Twin Satellites to Launch Site for NASA Mars Mission Rocket Lab.md\|Rocket Lab Ships Twin Satellites to Launch Site for NASA Mars Mission Rocket Lab]] | August 16, 2024 | | [[News/Rocket Lab Completes Integration and Testing of Twin Spacecraft for NASA Mars Mission.md\|Rocket Lab Completes Integration and Testing of Twin Spacecraft for NASA Mars Mission]] | July 29, 2024 | | [[News/Rocket Lab Integrating Twin Spacecraft for Mission to Mars for NASA.md\|Rocket Lab Integrating Twin Spacecraft for Mission to Mars for NASA]] | October 18, 2023 | | [[News/Rocket Lab Spacecraft Confirmed for Mars as NASA Greenlights ESCAPADE Small Satellite Interplanetary Mission.md\|Rocket Lab Spacecraft Confirmed for Mars as NASA Greenlights ESCAPADE Small Satellite Interplanetary Mission]] | August 23, 2021 | | [[News/Rocket Lab Awarded Contract to Design Twin Spacecraft for Mars.md\|Rocket Lab Awarded Contract to Design Twin Spacecraft for Mars]] | June 15, 2021 | %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: end %%     ## Media  🔗 Backup Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8Hn1GNz5oo  🔗 Backup Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBa5ZIt_M2c ## Links [🔗 NASA](https://science.nasa.gov/mission/escapade/) 🔗 [Rocket Lab](https://rocketlabcorp.com/missions/escapade/) 🔗 [EO Portal](https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/escapade)