ESCAPADE is being developed under NASA’s Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration (SIMPLEx) program in the Science Mission Directorate (SMD). The mission is led by UCBSSL with spacecraft design provided by Rocket Lab.
The spacecraft were designed, built, integrated, and tested at Rocket Lab’s Spacecraft Production Complex and headquarters in Long Beach, California. Based on Rocket Lab’s Explorer spacecraft, a configurable, high delta-V interplanetary platform, the duo features Rocket Lab-built components and subsystems, including solar panels, star trackers, propellant tanks, reaction wheels, reaction control systems, radios, and more.", "items": [], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 375172, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14642/#media_group_375172", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "items": [ { "id": 494658, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1159041, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet.jpg", "filename": "RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 1241, "height": 1754, "pixels": 2176714 } }, { "id": 494659, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1159042, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_print.jpg", "filename": "RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 1024, "height": 1447, "pixels": 1481728 } }, { "id": 494660, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1159043, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_searchweb.png", "filename": "RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_searchweb.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 320, "height": 180, "pixels": 57600 } }, { "id": 494661, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1159044, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_web.png", "filename": "RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_web.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 320, "height": 452, "pixels": 144640 } }, { "id": 494662, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1159045, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_thm.png", "filename": "RL-ESCAPADE-Spec_Sheet_thm.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 80, "height": 40, "pixels": 3200 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 375173, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14642/#media_group_375173", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "items": [ { "id": 433058, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096043, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_print.jpg", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 1024, "height": 866, "pixels": 886784 } }, { "id": 433056, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096041, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_transparent.png", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_transparent.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 3160, "height": 2675, "pixels": 8453000 } }, { "id": 433057, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096042, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_white.png", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_white.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 3160, "height": 2675, "pixels": 8453000 } }, { "id": 433059, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096044, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_searchweb.png", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_searchweb.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 320, "height": 180, "pixels": 57600 } }, { "id": 433060, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096045, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_web.png", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_web.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 320, "height": 271, "pixels": 86720 } }, { "id": 433061, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 1096046, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014642/Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_thm.png", "filename": "Mars_ESC_Diagram_white_thm.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 80, "height": 40, "pixels": 3200 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 375144, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14642/#media_group_375144", "widget": "Basic text", "title": "For More Information", "caption": "", "description": "See [ESCAPADE Mission Homepage](https://science.nasa.gov/mission/escapade/)", "items": [], "extra_data": {} } ], "studio": "gms", "funding_sources": [ "PAO" ], "credits": [ { "role": "Producer", "people": [ { "name": "Beth Anthony", "employer": "eMITS" } ] } ], "missions": [], "series": [], "tapes": [], "papers": [], "datasets": [], "nasa_science_categories": [ "Planets & Moons", "Sun" ], "keywords": [ "Infographic", "Magnetic Fields", "Magnetosphere", "Mars", "Mars Arrival", "Mars Atmosphere", "Mars Upper Atmosphere" ], "recommended_pages": [], "related": [ { "id": 14675, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14675/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Testing and Integration", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape.The spacecraft were designed, built, integrated, and tested by Rocket Lab at their Spacecraft Production Complex and Headquarters in Long Beach, California. Based on Rocket Lab’s Explorer spacecraft, a configurable, high delta-V interplanetary platform, the duo features Rocket Lab-built components and subsystems, including solar panels, star trackers, propellant tanks, reaction wheels, reaction control systems, radios, and more.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2024-09-03T17:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2024-09-11T15:40:29.041203-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 1098230, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014675/ESCAPADE_Spacecraft_Full_Integration_01_print.jpg", "filename": "ESCAPADE_Spacecraft_Full_Integration_01_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Image of the fully integrated ESCAPADE spacecraft in the clean room at Rocket Lab’s Space Systems Production Complex and Headquarters in Long Beach, California, before they are shipped to Astrotech Space Operations for pre-launch preparations.Photo Credit: Rocket Lab USA", "width": 1024, "height": 682, "pixels": 698368 } }, { "id": 14664, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14664/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Mission Trailer", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape.The first coordinated multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to the Red Planet, ESCAPADE’s twin orbiters will take simultaneous observations from different locations around Mars to reveal the planet’s real-time response to space weather and how the Martian magnetosphere changes over time.ESCAPADE will analyze how Mars’ magnetic field guides particle flows around the planet, how energy and momentum are transported from the solar wind through the magnetosphere, and what processes control the flow of energy and matter into and out of the Martian atmosphere. The data returned from the ESCAPADE spacecraft will provide new insight into the evolution of Mars’ climate, contributing to the body of research investigating how Mars began losing its atmosphere and water system.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2024-08-23T16:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2025-03-01T08:44:19.389963-05:00", "main_image": { "id": 1096700, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014664/ESCAPADE_Trailer_thumb.png", "filename": "ESCAPADE_Trailer_thumb.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Music Credit: \"Inviolable\" by Bob E. Thole [BUMA] via Universal Production MusicAnimation Credits: James Rattray/Rocket Lab USA; Blue Origin", "width": 1280, "height": 720, "pixels": 921600 } }, { "id": 14667, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14667/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Instrument Build and Testing", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape.The first multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to the Red Planet, ESCAPADE’s twin orbiters will take simultaneous observations from different locations around Mars to reveal the planet’s real-time response to space weather and how the Martian magnetosphere changes over time.ESCAPADE will analyze how Mars’ magnetic field guides particle flows around the planet, how energy and momentum are transported from the solar wind through the magnetosphere, and what processes control the flow of energy and matter into and out of the Martian atmosphere. The data returned from the ESCAPADE spacecraft will provide new insight into the evolution of Mars’ climate, contributing to the body of research investigating how Mars began losing its atmosphere and water system.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2024-08-22T14:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2024-08-22T14:48:19.968157-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 1097135, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014667/ESCAPADE_Berkeley_1080_001.00001_print.jpg", "filename": "ESCAPADE_Berkeley_1080_001.00001_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Dr. Phyllis Whittlesey (EESA-e instrument lead) is demonstrating the subsystem components of an Electrostatic Analyser, and how the components interface with each other.Footage Credit: University of California, Berkeley/Patrick Farrell", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } }, { "id": 14665, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14665/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Spacecraft Development Images", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape.The first coordinated multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to the Red Planet, ESCAPADE’s twin orbiters will take simultaneous observations from different locations around Mars to reveal the planet’s real-time response to space weather and how the Martian magnetosphere changes over time. The data returned from the ESCAPADE spacecraft will provide new insight into the evolution of Mars’ climate, contributing to the body of research investigating how Mars began losing its atmosphere and water system.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin.The spacecraft were designed, built, integrated, and tested at Rocket Lab’s Spacecraft Production Complex and headquarters in Long Beach, California. Based on Rocket Lab’s Explorer spacecraft, a configurable, high delta-V interplanetary platform, the duo features Rocket Lab-built components and subsystems, including solar panels, star trackers, propellant tanks, reaction wheels, reaction control systems, radios, and more. || ", "release_date": "2024-08-21T09:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2024-08-20T15:12:13.941642-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 1096827, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014665/ESCAPADE_001_print.jpg", "filename": "ESCAPADE_001_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "ESCAPADE spacecraft development at Rocket Lab’s Spacecraft Production Complex and headquarters in Long Beach, California.Image Credit: Rocket Lab", "width": 1024, "height": 768, "pixels": 786432 } }, { "id": 14641, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14641/", "page_type": "Infographic", "title": "ESCAPADE Mission Posters", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape.The first coordinated multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to the Red Planet, ESCAPADE’s twin orbiters will take simultaneous observations from different locations around Mars to reveal the planet’s real-time response to space weather and how the Martian magnetosphere changes over time.ESCAPADE will analyze how Mars’ magnetic field guides particle flows around the planet, how energy and momentum are transported from the solar wind through the magnetosphere, and what processes control the flow of energy and matter into and out of the Martian atmosphere. The data returned from the ESCAPADE spacecraft will provide new insight into the evolution of Mars’ climate, contributing to the body of research investigating how Mars began losing its atmosphere and water system.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2024-07-30T15:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2024-07-30T14:58:03.792202-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 1095814, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014641/ESCAPADE-FINAL-Horizontal-Front_Web.jpg", "filename": "ESCAPADE-FINAL-Horizontal-Front_Web.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "ESCAPADE Horizontal Poster FRONTCredit: NASA/Kristen Perrin", "width": 2100, "height": 1421, "pixels": 2984100 } }, { "id": 14635, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14635/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Mission Spacecraft Beauty Passes", "description": "NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE) mission will study the interaction between the solar wind and Martian atmosphere. Two identical spacecraft will orbit around the Red Planet to understand the structure, composition, variability, and dynamics of Mars’ unique hybrid magnetosphere, including its real-time response to space weather.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 — so much that Mars no longer supports liquid water on its surface. The pair will be the first coordinated multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to Mars.ESCAPADE is part of the NASA Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration (SIMPLEx) program. The mission is managed by the University of California Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2024-07-22T12:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2025-11-13T12:07:04-05:00", "main_image": { "id": 1095460, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014635/RL_ESCAPADE_Beauty_Shot001.00181_print.jpg", "filename": "RL_ESCAPADE_Beauty_Shot001.00181_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "ESCAPADE twin spacecraft entering Mars’ orbit. Note this is stylized: the spacecraft arrive at Mars 48 hours apart.Credits: James Rattray/Rocket Lab USA", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } }, { "id": 4825, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4825/", "page_type": "Visualization", "title": "MAVEN – Mars and Solar Wind Simulation", "description": "This simulation depicts the solar wind interacting with the Mars upper atmosphere, with MAVEN's orbit embedded. || maven_cme44.03600_print.jpg (1024x512) [253.9 KB] || maven_cme44.03600_searchweb.png (320x180) [92.7 KB] || maven_cme44.03600_thm.png (80x40) [5.2 KB] || 1920x1080_16x9_30p (2048x1024) [0 Item(s)] || maven_cme44_1024p30.webm (2048x1024) [5.9 MB] || maven_cme44_1024p30.mp4 (2048x1024) [195.1 MB] || maven_cme44_1024p30.mp4.hwshow [58 bytes] || ", "release_date": "2020-05-25T00:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2025-03-16T22:46:51.857817-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 384913, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a004800/a004825/maven_cme44.03600_print.jpg", "filename": "maven_cme44.03600_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "This simulation depicts the solar wind interacting with the Mars upper atmosphere, with MAVEN's orbit embedded.", "width": 1024, "height": 512, "pixels": 524288 } }, { "id": 20297, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/20297/", "page_type": "Animation", "title": "Magnetospheres of our Solar System", "description": "A magnetosphere is the magnetic field shields a planet against the Sun's dangerous radiation. Not all magnetospheres are alike. This animation depicts the unique magnetospheres around Earth, Mars, and Jupiter. To demonstrate their strength, each planet's magnetosphere receives a direct hit from a coronal mass ejection (CME) - a cloud of dense radiation and magnetic field from the Sun. The impact of the CME on the planet depends on the strength of the magnetosphere. On Mars, the magnetosphere is weak and patchy, resulting in some loss of the planet's atmosphere. At Earth, the magnetosphere acts as a buffer, deforming from the impact, but protecting the planet. For Jupiter, the punch of the CME is barely felt by the massive magnetic field. || ", "release_date": "2019-09-16T00:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2023-05-03T13:45:38.848251-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 392915, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a020000/a020200/a020297/H_0219_VC_Animation_Full.00600_print.jpg", "filename": "H_0219_VC_Animation_Full.00600_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Animation of a coronal mass ejection impacting Mars, Earth, and Jupiter. Credit: NASA GSFC/CIL/Bailee DesRocher", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } } ], "sources": [], "products": [], "newer_versions": [], "older_versions": [ { "id": 14666, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14666/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ESCAPADE Launch Phase and Deployment Animations", "description": "The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or ESCAPADE, will use two identical spacecraft to investigate how the solar wind interacts with Mars’ magnetic environment and how this interaction drives the planet’s atmospheric escape. The first multi-spacecraft orbital science mission to the Red Planet, ESCAPADE’s twin orbiters will take simultaneous observations from different locations around Mars to reveal the planet’s real-time response to space weather and how the Martian magnetosphere changes over time.The ESCAPADE mission will be carried into orbit on the second launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket. New Glenn is a single-configuration, heavy-lift orbital launch vehicle capable of routinely carrying both spacecraft and people to low Earth orbits, geostationary transfer orbits, cislunar orbits (between Earth and the Moon), and beyond via Earth-departure orbits like the one required for ESCAPADE. The vehicle is named after John Glenn, the first American astronaut to orbit Earth.The ESCAPADE mission is managed by the Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, with key partners Rocket Lab, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space LLC, and Blue Origin. || ", "release_date": "2025-11-13T12:00:00-05:00", "update_date": "2025-11-13T12:00:59-05:00", "main_image": { "id": 1159081, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a014600/a014666/14666_NewGlenn_ESCAPADE_4K_ProRes.00075_print.jpg", "filename": "14666_NewGlenn_ESCAPADE_4K_ProRes.00075_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Credit: Blue Origin", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } } ], "alternate_versions": [] }