To achieve human landings on Mars in the coming decades, understanding the challenges awaiting arrivals is crucial. As a potential precursor to crewed Mars exploration missions, M-MATISSE is expected to revolutionize our understanding of Martian space weather, leveraging UK-led instruments promoted at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting 2025 in Durham.

The project plans to send two robotic orbiters to Mars to deeply investigate the complex interactions of the Martian magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, lower atmosphere, and radiation buildup. Researchers state that this will help predict hazards that spacecraft and astronauts might encounter, serving as an important prerequisite for future robotic and human Mars exploration, while further revealing Mars' habitability. If approved by the European Space Agency (ESA) next year, M-MATISSE would become the first mission dedicated specifically to studying planetary space weather at Mars. Dr. Beatriz Sánchez-Cano from the University of Leicester said: "M-MATISSE will, for the first time, present the dynamic global characteristics of the Martian system at all altitudes, understanding how the atmosphere dissipates solar wind energy and the impact of space weather on surface processes. This is crucial for exploring Mars, enabling accurate space weather forecasts to prevent dangerous situations."

M-MATISSE is one of three candidate projects for ESA's "medium" class missions, with one expected to be selected by mid-2026. If chosen, it will use two identical spacecraft, each carrying the same instruments, to simultaneously observe Mars from different locations. "Henri" will spend most of its time within the Martian plasma system, while "Marguerite" will primarily operate in the solar wind and/or the distant Martian tail region. The mission can reveal the influence of solar wind on Mars' atmosphere, ionosphere, and magnetosphere, as well as the effects of these interactions on the lower atmosphere and surface—critical for understanding Mars' habitability and atmospheric climate evolution. Dr. Sánchez-Cano, recipient of the 2022 RAS Fowler Award, stated: "The UK is leading a large international collaboration during the mission selection phase, responsible for the particle instrument suite to provide the most precise Martian particle observation data, as well as the mission science center for planning science and coordinating data utilization."