The European-Russian ExoMars mission is destined for Mars this month in an expedition that could answer the age-old question of whether there is life on other planets.

The spacecraft is slated to lift off from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan aboard a Proton rocket on March 14, at promptly 5:31 A.M. (ET), marking the start of a seven month sojourn with the spacecraft expected to land on Mars sometime around October.

During the ExoMars 2016 first part of the two-phase mission, the spacecraft will carry an atmospheric probe designed to sniff out such gases as methane that might radiate near Mars and contain a satellite that will track a rover from space. The mission will also include testing out various technologies that might be needed for the second part of the mission in 2018, when a Mars rover will be launched.

The spacecraft consists of an orbiter used to measure methane and other gases in the Martian atmosphere and a lander, known as Schiaparelli, to study dust storms.

NASA Mars Rover Curiousity Previously Detected Methane

Back in 2014, NASA's Mars rover Curiosity detected spurts of methane gas in the planet's atmosphere. Here on Earth, methane is a chemical that on is strongly tied to life.

Many scientists have narrowed the discovery down to two possibilities: That the methane could stem from micro-organisms known as methanogenes, that became extinct millions of years ago and left gas frozen below the planet's surface, or that some methane-producing organisms still exist.

"Proving that life exists or has existed on Mars would show that Earth is not unique in terms of having life on it," Rolf de Groot, head of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Robotic Exploration Coordination Office, recently told Reuters.

"That would make it much more likely that there are other places in the universe that also have life," he added.

Another possibility could be that the methane is produced by geological phenomena, similar to the oxidation of iron.

2018 Mission Will Look to Analyze Samples

The 2018 part of the mission, where a European rover is delivered to the surface of Mars, will be the first time such an instrument has had the ability to both move across the planet's surface and drill into the ground to collect and analyze samples.

"The radiation from space destroys all the biological material," added de Groot. "If you go two meters into the ground you may be able to find places that were protected (from radiation)."

The total U.S. cost of the ExoMars mission is expected to top $1.4 billion. In 2018, NASA also plans to launch a Mars spacecraft, a satellite known as InSight and designed to study the deep interior of Mars.

Related Space News

NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly recently returned from a yearlong stay in space where he reportedly grew taller after he returned to earth.

Word is Kelly was two inches taller upon his return from his International Space Station mission. The Verge reports such growth typically happens because of a lack of gravity in space, which results in the spine stretching to longer dimensions.

The new height is expected to only be temporary, with the eventually expected to shrink him back down to his original height.

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