NASA's Aeolus mission will map Martian atmosphere globally, filling a critical operational gap for future landings

NASA and Relativity Space will launch the Aeolus orbiter to Mars by 2028 to conduct the first global survey of Martian winds, temperatures, dust, and clouds. NASA provides the atmospheric-science instrument; Relativity develops the spacecraft. The dataset directly supports entry, descent, landing models, and surface operations planning for all missions that follow—making it operationally essential, not merely scientific.