The objective is to establish a widespread surface observation network on Mars to investigate the planet's atmospheric structure, physics and meteorology.

[3][4] MetNet can be considered as a successor of the NetLander, Russian Mars 96 and the earlier ESA Marsnet and InterMarsnet mission concepts.

[5] Of these Mars 96 went all the way to launch, but failure on the trans-mars injection with fourth stage of the rocket caused it to re-enter Earth and break-up.

Mars MetNet includes both a global-scale, multi-point network of surface probes supplemented by a supporting satellite in orbit, for a projected duration of two Martian years.

Somewhere in the range of ten to twenty observation points is seen as a minimum to get a good picture of atmospheric phenomena on a planet-wide scale.

[13] Scientific objectives of the lander are to study:[14] The purpose of the Mars MetNet Precursor Mission is to confirm the concept of deployment for the mini-meteorological stations onto the Martian surface, to obtain atmospheric data during the descent phase, and to obtain information about the meteorology and surface structure at the landing site during one Martian year or longer.

[15] Each MetNet lander, or impactor probe, will use an inflatable entry and descent system instead of rigid heat shields and parachutes as earlier semi-hard landing devices have used.

[18] The Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) originally planned to launch the demonstration lander on board the Phobos Grunt mission on 2011.

The notional payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor Mission may include the following instruments:[12][15] The impact landers are equipped with flexible solar panels, located on the upper side of the inflatable braking unit, that will provide approximately 0.6 W during the day.