Curiosity (rover) no chance of obtaining funds in Europe, at that time, of the scale previously considered necessary for a Mars rover, so the team used innovative methods to reduce the cost to less than 4% of the cost of the "Curiosity" mission. They also had only one shot, with no funding for repeat missions (it was named "Beagle 2" as a successor to , not to an earlier rover). It was considered a large risk, and, although "Beagle 2" did successfully survive its entry, descent, and landing, incomplete deployment of the solar panels hampered communication back to Earth. The team has
Gliese 687 40% of the Sun's mass and nearly 50% of the Sun's radius. Compared to the Sun, it has a slightly higher proportion of elements with higher atomic numbers than helium. It appears to have a rotation of 60 days and to be somewhat chromospherically active. It displays no excess of infrared radiation that would indicate orbiting dust. It is known to have a planet, Gliese 687 b, with a mass of 18.394 Earth masses (which makes it comparable to Neptune), an orbital period of 38.14 days, and a low orbital eccentricity. Gliese 687 is a solitary red dwarf that emits