Three European consortia have won contracts to design a mission to Mars that should launch from Earth in 2009.
The ExoMars probe will put a rover on the surface of the Red Planet to look for signs of current or past life.
The companies, from European Space Agency (Esa) member states and Canada, have been asked to investigate the technology required for the mission.
If the design work goes well and the funds are available, a consortium will then be told to start building ExoMars.
Humans on Mars
The industrial teams are headed by Alenia Spazio (Italy), Alcatel Space (France) and EADS Astrium (France).
ExoMars is part of Esa's Aurora programme which has set out objectives for exploring the Solar System in the decades ahead.
The programme could eventually see humans go back to the Moon and even go to Mars, perhaps by 2030.
"This is an exciting landmark for the Aurora programme, since these are the first contracts dedicated to mission development rather than technical studies," said Bruno Gardini, Aurora Project Manager.
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