First British-built rover to land on the red planet in 2030

Is there life on Mars? It's hoped that this British rover will help find out

It's been announced that a space rover built in the UK will be the first ever European space rover to land on Mars.

Made by Airbus UK, the Rosalind Franklin rover will be sent into space as part of a mission by the European Space Agency (ESA).

It will make a two-year journey across space to land on Mars in 2030, where it will hunt for rocks, fossils, and any other evidence to understand more about how the solar system was formed.

Scientists hope that the findings could tell us more about whether there is life beyond Earth.

The space rover was built by Airbus back in 2019, but it's being upgraded in time for its first space mission.

It is named after the famous scientist Rosalind Franklin, who made big achievements that advanced our understanding around DNA.

The Rosalind Franklin rover has got parts from all over the UK, with a panoramic camera from University College London and an advanced spectrometer from the University of Aberystwyth.

The spectrometer - which is a special scientific measuring instrument - will be used to decide which Martian rocks to drill to test for signs of ancient life.

Scientist and space expert Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock said: "The British-built Rosalind Franklin rover will give us vital insight into the history of Mars.

"This type of information from other planets can give us a better understanding of our own place in space and our planetary evolution.

"Samples gathered by the Rosalind Franklin rover may help us answer the age old question 'Are we alone in the universe?'"

The Rosalind Franklin is expected to launch on a Nasa rocket in 2028.