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Nasa's next rover to land on Mars could have a little helper to help keep it safe while exploring the planet's surface.

British engineers have been testing a new type of intelligent robot that can be deployed from a larger vehicle on the Martian surface to act as a scout in the surrounding landscape.

They hope the scout, which is about 30 inches (76cm) long, will be used on a planned joint Nasa and European Space Agency mission to bring back samples of soil from Mars to Earth.

British engineers are testing a new intelligent scout robot (shown). They say it could be deployed from a larger vehicle on the Martian surface. It would 'scurry' ahead to find objects of interest for the rover to explore. This would make the process of analysing objects on Mars quicker

The scout would trundle ahead of the main rover to assess its route across the red planet for soft sand and hidden rocks that have damaged and even killed off previous rovers.

Using a range of laser scanners and soil analysers, the scout is able to tell the main rover that its path is safe, allowing it to move far faster than has been possible on previous missions.

Up until now rovers on Mars have moved at an achingly slow pace to give them time to avoid hazards.

The Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, of which the latter is still active, managed an average of just 0.02mph (0.03km/h), while Curiosity has a top speed of 0.08mph (0.13km/h).

The European Space Agency intends to launch its own rover, ExoMars, in 2018 and it will face the same problems.

'We are looking at the next critical mission, which will be Mars Sample Return,' said Dr Elie Allouis, a robotics systems engineer at Airbus Defence and Space who has been helping to develop the scout rover.

'This calls for a lightweight rover that will cover about 20km [12 miles] in about six months. To put things in perspective, the American MER Rover did the same in about six years.

'We need to go as fast as possible so we need to make sure the safety of the platform is maintained throughout this long traverse.

'With the past rovers they have been bogged down in a very fine sanddune and they got so stuck that it actually killed that particular platform.

'The purpose of the scout is to go ahead and find these sand traps before the primary rover actually reaches them.'

It is hoped that with the scout, which has been nicknamed Faster, scientists will be able to explore parts of Mars that have been inaccessible with previous rovers.

Until now, Mars rovers have required relatively flat terrain with few rocks, which would pose a risk to the rover, trap it or even lead to them overturning.

Current rovers on Mars are very slow. Curiosity, for example, moves at just 0.08mph (0.13km/h). 'We are looking at the next critical mission, which will be Mars Sample Return,' said Dr Elie Allouis, a robotics systems engineer at Airbus Defence and Space who has been helping to develop the scout rover

The scout (shown) would trundle ahead of the main rover to assess its route across the red planet for soft sand and hidden rocks that have damaged and even killed off previous rovers. Using a range of laser scanners and soil analysers, the scout is able to tell the main rover that its path is safe

In May 2009 Spirit became bogged down in deep sand, which eventually led to it breaking down completely at the end of its six year mission.

The Mars Sample Return mission, which is scheduled for launch sometime before 2022, will use a rover to gather soil samples from several sites and then launch them from the Martian surface in a rocket back to Earth so they can be analysed by scientists.

Under plans being drawn up by scientists from the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, the University of Surrey and Airbus, this rover will also carry a smaller scout rover to assess the ground ahead.

They have been testing the rover at Airbus's Mars Yard, in Stevenage - a warehouse that has been turned into a replica of the Martian surface.

Equipped with a laser scanner, the scout works with the main navigation system on board the main rover to build up a picture of the surrounding landscape before plotting a route.

The front wheels of the scout rover are shaped like a star to help it overcome obstacles and difficult terrain while its rear wheels are ridged with teeth to provide extra grip.

Each front wheel has several 'feet' on the end of each star point to help provide information about the soil while cameras on the belly of scout also how firm the ground is.

The European Space Agency intends to launch its own rover, ExoMars, in 2018 by the earliest and it will likely face the same speed issue problems as Nasa's various Mars rovers

Ground penetrating radar carried on the back of the scout can also help to spot hidden rocks and hollows.

Dr William Lewinger, who is part of the team developing the soil sensors on the scout at the University of Surrey, said: 'The problem on Mars is that there is a thin crust on top of the surface, so with cameras it all looks the same and you can't see that there is nasty soft bits underneath.

'By having penetrating sensors we can look below the surface. The small rover can drive in places well beyond the main rover.

'So we have a rover, which is highly mobile and agile, that can go forward to test out the sand first. If it is okay, then the main rover can move.

'If it is not ok then Bridget [the nickname of the Exomars rover] plans a new path and sends the scout on that path to check that out first.'