Later this year, a joint operation between the European Space Agency and Roscosmos would have launched a rover with a view to exploring Mars but recent events have forced a pause.

Following a meeting with 22 European Space Agency member states, the agency has decided to impose sanctions on Russia. This presents something of an issue because Russian cosmonauts are currently at the International Space Station. As such, the ESA says it will coordinate with its international partners including NASA to align the actions of that organisation with the wishes of ESA member states.

According to a report by The Register, NASA associate administrator Kathey Leuders said that all teams aboard the ISS were training and working together.

The sad news for everybody involved is that the ExoMars mission will likely not take place in September this year.

“Regarding the ExoMars programme continuation, the sanctions and the wider context make a launch in 2022 very unlikely. ESA’s Director General will analyse all the options and prepare a formal decision on the way forward by ESA Member States,” the agency said in a statement.

The ExoMars mission was being launched with a view to exploring the possibility that there was life on Mars at one point. The mission was set to launch from Kazakhstan on 20th September and land on Mars on 10th June 2023.

This delay could push the launch of ExoMars back even further considering that the distance between Earth and our planetary neighbour is constantly changing. This makes launching a rocket toward Mars an intensive excercise that requires careful planning.

Planning that will likely have to start all over again given the situation in Europe.