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JAXA and ESA launch joint mission to Mars moon Phobos

Space1 min read

Japan's space agency JAXA and Europe's ESA are launching a joint mission called MMX to Phobos, a small moon of Mars. The goal is to find out where Phobos came from.

A mission to a Martian moon

JAXA and ESA plan to launch the MMX spacecraft on October 20 from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. A Japanese H3 rocket will carry it. The spacecraft also carries a small rover called Idefix, which was built partly in Germany and France. MMX will study Phobos and collect samples to bring back to Earth.

Key facts

  • Launch: October 20, 4:41 a.m. local time in Japan (October 19, 21:41 in Germany).
  • Phobos orbits Mars at about 6,000 km. Its widest point is about 27 km across.
  • A day on Phobos lasts a little more than 7.5 hours.
  • The spacecraft should reach Mars in August 2027.
  • The rover Idefix weighs 25 kg and should land on Phobos in early 2029.

Why so little is known

No spacecraft has ever landed on Phobos or Deimos, the two moons of Mars. So scientists know little about what these moons are made of. Some think Phobos may be a captured asteroid. Others think it may be a piece of Mars that broke off after a collision.

Why it matters

The mission could solve a long-standing puzzle about how Mars's moons formed. The samples could tell scientists what Phobos is made of and where it came from. The mission also tests how a rover drives in very low gravity.

What to watch

  • Whether the H3 rocket launches successfully. Its first flight in 2023 failed, and another failure came in December 2025.
  • Whether the spacecraft arrives at Mars in August 2027 and enters orbit around Phobos a month later.
  • Whether Idefix lands safely in early 2029 and finds a good landing spot for the spacecraft.
  • Whether the sample capsule returns to Earth around 2031.

Glossary

JAXA
Japan's national space agency, which leads the MMX mission with ESA.
ESA
The European Space Agency, a group of European countries that runs space projects.
MMX
Martian Moons eXploration, a mission to study Phobos and bring back samples.
Idefix
A small rover that will drive on Phobos. Germany's DLR and France's CNES built it.
H3
A Japanese rocket that will launch the MMX spacecraft.
Phobos
The larger and closer of Mars's two moons.

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