Japan launches unprecedented mission to bring Phobos samples home
Usagevpn.com – Japan launches unprecedented mission to bring material from Mars’ moon Phobos back to Earth, beginning a five-year scientific journey unlike any before it. The effort could reveal how Mars and its two small moons formed while returning samples from a world never visited on the surface.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launched its Martian Moon Exploration mission, known as MMX, before sunrise on Tuesday from Tanegashima Island. Roughly an hour after liftoff, officials confirmed that the spacecraft had separated from the rocket’s upper stage as planned.
Japan leads the project with the participation of five space agencies. MMX is expected to collect dust, soil and rocks from Phobos before returning them to Earth in 2031.
“There’s a lot of adrenaline and a lot of excitement and a lot of wow,” said NASA astrophysicist Tom Statler, who is involved in the project.
Exploring Mars’ closest moon
Phobos is the larger and closer of Mars’ two moons. The irregular, potato-shaped body is about 22 kilometres wide and travels in a close orbit around the Red Planet. MMX will also study the smaller moon, Deimos, during flybys after completing its primary work at Phobos.
While NASA has sent nine spacecraft to Mars over the past five decades and China landed there in 2021, neither Phobos nor Deimos has received a surface visitor. No mission has yet returned samples from Mars or either of its moons.
The approximately $578 million spacecraft weighs about five tonnes and is expected to reach Mars by late next summer. It must carefully match Phobos’ orbit, where extremely weak gravity makes landing and surface operations especially difficult.
Japan launches unprecedented mission to bring this experience beyond its earlier asteroid sample-return projects. Those missions helped establish expertise that will now be applied to the more demanding Martian system.
Idefix rover will assess landing risks
Before the main spacecraft lands, it will deploy Idefix, a compact French-German rover named after the white terrier in the Asterix comic books. The four-wheeled rover is about the size of a microwave oven and will investigate the surface conditions.
Idefix is designed to fall onto Phobos and bounce for several minutes before settling. It can recover if it first lands upside down, although mission planners must account for the possibility that soft material could trap it or rocks could leave it stuck.
After its solar panels unfold, the rover will not be able to turn itself upright. It is therefore expected to move at only one millimetre per second, or 0.04 inches per second.
“Scout for safety,” said Julien Baroukh of the French Space Agency, describing the rover’s purpose.
Over about 100 days, Idefix will examine terrain and identify hazards to help controllers select a safer landing area for MMX. Loose powder-like soil and rugged ground could complicate the sampling operation.
A short landing with major scientific value
The main MMX spacecraft is scheduled to touch down on Phobos in late 2028 or 2029. Its four-legged lander is expected to stay for around two hours, reflecting the operational risks of working in very low gravity.
During that visit, it will drill and use a vacuum-like system to collect at least 10 grams, or one-third of an ounce, of material. The spacecraft will then depart Phobos, make observations during Deimos flybys, leave the Martian region in 2030 and send its return capsule to the Australian desert the following year.
Japan launches unprecedented mission to bring samples that may answer a central question about the Martian moons: whether Phobos and Deimos formed after a major collision involving Mars and a large space rock, or whether they were asteroids captured by Mars’ gravity.
Frequently asked questions
When are the samples expected to return? The return capsule is intended to land in the Australian desert in 2031.
Why are Phobos samples important? They could help scientists understand the origins of Phobos and Deimos, and provide clues about the history of the Martian system.
How much material will MMX collect? The spacecraft aims to gather at least 10 grams of dust, soil and rocks from Phobos.
