Japan Launches MMX Mission to Bring Back Samples From Phobos

Overview

• Japan’s space agency launched the MMX spacecraft on an H3 rocket from Tanegashima on Monday and the probe is now en route to the Mars system under its published timeline.
• MMX will enter a close orbit of Phobos about a year after launch to study the moon and attempt a brief surface sampling that a lander will perform during a two-hour window.
• A small Franco-German rover called Idefix will operate as a roughly 100-day scout to map safe terrain before the main lander drills and uses suction to collect at least 10 grams of material.
• The mission is led by JAXA with major contributions from NASA, CNES, DLR and ESA and reported budget shares that include about $350 million from Japan and smaller amounts from partner agencies.
• The operation faces high technical risk given Phobos’s tiny gravity and past failed attempts to reach the moon but could reshape plans for Mars exploration and compete with other sample-return efforts planned by China and the United States.