Japan aims for the moons of Mars

Japan is preparing a mission to Mars' moons, the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX), to collect samples that may reveal the origins of the solar system and life on Earth. The spacecraft, set to launch from Tanegashima Space Center in the coming months, will stay in Mars' orbit for around three years and attempt to land on Phobos, the smaller of Mars' two moons. It will collect at least 10 grams of material from Phobos and conduct surface observations with the IDEFIX rover. The mission will also observe Deimos, the other moon, but without landing, before returning to Earth in 2031. The spacecraft will help determine how Mars and its moons formed, a key piece of knowledge in understanding the solar system's origins.

The MMX mission is a collaboration with France's CNES, Germany's DLR, NASA, and the European Space Agency, as well as universities and tech companies. The spacecraft's landing legs were developed to handle the extremely low gravity on Phobos, with engineers ensuring the probe can withstand the impact of landing. The mission aims to explore the possibility of using Phobos as a "natural space station" for future crewed missions. JAXA hopes that the mission will shed light on the transport mechanisms that delivered water, volatiles, and organic compounds from the outer solar system to the inner rocky planet region, potentially aiding in the emergence of life on Earth.

The mission is not the only Mars mission aiming to bring back samples. NASA's Perseverance rover has already collected samples but was canceled by the Trump administration. China's Tianwen-3 spacecraft is scheduled for launch in 2028 and aims to return samples from Mars in 2031, potentially earlier than MMX's sample return. The mission will help determine whether Phobos and Deimos are remnants of early delivery systems that delivered materials essential for life on rocky planets.

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