Japan Set to Launch Historic Round-Trip Mission to Mars's Moons
Japan is preparing to launch an unmanned spacecraft to the Martian region in what aims to be the first-ever round-trip mission to the moons of Mars, with the goal of retrieving samples that could reveal clues about the origins of the Solar System and life on Earth.
The Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) probe is scheduled to lift off on a flagship H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center on Tuesday at 4:41 am, according to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The mission is an international collaboration involving space agencies from the United States, France, Germany, and Europe, alongside approximately 20 universities and technology companies.
After launching, the spacecraft will take roughly one year to reach the Martian system. It plans to orbit the moon Phobos for up to three years, deploy a surface observation rover named IDEFIX, and collect at least 10 grams of surface material. The mission will also observe Mars's other moon, Deimos, before making the return journey to Earth.
Scientists hope the returned samples will help clarify whether Phobos and Deimos were formed by a giant celestial impact with Mars or captured as asteroids by the planet's gravity. Resolving this question could shed light on how habitable environments and organic compounds developed across the inner rocky planets.