The VESTA project: Combined studies of Mars and small bodies of the solar system

A mission to Mars and small solar system bodies is presently studied as a possible collaboration between INTERCOSMOS, CNES, ESA and eventually other participants. The VESTA concept, based on the same strategy as the successful VEGA mission, is more ambitious, as two spacecrafts separate soon after launch: a soviet spacecraft, dedicated to the study of Mars, and a spacecraft dedicated to the study of small bodies, under the responsibility of CNES and ESA. This spacecraft would use Mars gravity assists to visit up to 4 small bodies in less than 5 years. The mission is duplicated, which means that up to 8 small bodies could be studied (e.g. 6 main belt asteroids, 1 apollo-amor asteroid and 1 short period comet). Low relative velocities (< 3.5 km/s) should allow to drop a penetrator on two large main belt asteroids, such as 4 Vesta and 1 Ceres (1994 launch).