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International experts and Cypriots on Friday discussed a research project to test space equipment on the Mediterranean island before sending it to Mars to measure the age of its rocks, officials said.
Planetologists and geologists arrived in Cyprus earlier this month to test the equipment in the Troodos Mountains, which officials say has geological similarities to the red planet.
The project is funded by the European Commission and a first meeting between the Cyprus Space Exploration Organization (CSEO) and the Department for Geological Surveys began on Friday.
“The meeting discussed the goals of the international space program, the geological needs and the most suitable locations for the project,” said the government’s geological survey department.
The rock measurement project is “very innovative as there are no previous accurate measurements of the age of Mars rocks from previous missions,” he added in a statement.
However, he noted that “the geology of the Troodos mountains has much in common with the rocks of Mars”.
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Acting director of the geological survey department, Christodoulos Hadjigeorgiou, said Friday’s meeting went well with the local landscape know-how offered to international scientists.
The CSEO is taking part in an important international research project on Mars, in collaboration with three other European countries and the United States.
CSEO chief George Danos said the space project “highlights once again the uniqueness of our country’s geology, which can help prepare space missions to other celestial bodies.”
“Through this cooperation we will create new jobs for scientists in our country and new research projects in collaboration with international space agencies,” he added.
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