The Beagle 2 Lander was transported to Mars on 2 June 2003 with Colin Pillinger leading the mission.
"It only feels like yesterday - I was so proud of him," said his sister.
"Our family were honoured guests at the launch. I met lots of celebrities and it was a wonderful day," Doreen Lindegaard remembered.The Beagle 2 was intended to carry out an astrobiology mission to Mars, but it ultimately failed in its mission. The UK-built lander was successfully deployed from its mother craft Mars Express in December 2003 and was scheduled to land on the surface of Mars on Christmas Day that year.
However, the ESA did not receive any communication from Beagle 2 after its expected Mars landing time and it disappeared.Image caption,Speaking at an event to celebrate the launch anniversary, Ms Lindegaard said: "Colin was very, very clever - he won the Maths prize every year at school."He was not your average professor."