Thoth Technology, a company based in Ontario, Canada aims to launch a micro-rover and a mini-lander in 2018. The destination of these machines is Mars.

The company has launched a campaign on Indiegogo with the hopes of collecting money from people that will pay for the hardware they need to fly the "Northern Light Lander" and the "Beaver Rover" to Mars.

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Their aim is to raise US$1.1 million.

Toronto's York University has partnered with the company and is helping develop the project. The university houses numerous space testing facilities and will also analyze the mission's data when it has commenced.

The reason for their journey to Mars is humanity's survival, according to principal investigator for the mission Ben Quine.

"I think it's important to do big things," said Quine. "Mars is the only other habitable planet in the solar system, and if we want to survive, we need to be a multi-planet species."

Northern Light's aim is to gather data about rocks, minerals, and greenhouse gases on Mars. It will also focus on hunting for life.

Quine said Antarctica and the Canadian Arctic have photosynthetic microbes a millimeter or two surviving below the surface of the rocks. Here, they are protected from the sun's harsh UV rays, but can still produce energy from sunlight.

Thus, the project will look for similar factors in Mars by using the robotic arm to grind away at the surface of rocks.

Then, it will use a device called a photometer to scan the different shades of green that may indicate the presence of photosynthetic organisms.

The Beaver, on the other hand, is an intelligent rover that weighs just six kilograms as opposed to NASA's Curiosity Rover's 900 kilograms.

The rover will be run by autonomous algorithms that will allow it to maneuver around holes and avoid rocks.

TagsThoth Technology, Northern Light lander, Beaver rover, Indiegogo