We were all waiting last year for the launch of the most interesting mission, Exomars, which was supposed to land the Russian landing platform and the European rover on Mars. Unfortunately, however, cooperation between Europe and Russia on this mission was broken off, and now Russia and Europe are each working on their own missions to Mars. But the launch of these missions should not be expected before the late 2020s.
And yet, a new spacecraft will go to Mars as soon as a year from now. In 2024, the Japanese space agency’s Automated Martian Moons eXploration Interplanetary Station (MMX) (Martian Moons eXploration) will be launched to the Red Planet. MMX is expected to be the first spacecraft to deliver soil samples from the Martian moon Phobos to Earth.
After launching from Earth, the spacecraft will take approximately one year to reach Mars orbit. The spacecraft will then enter quasi-satellite orbit (QSO) to observe and collect samples. It is expected to return to Earth with soil samples in 2029.
Japanese space agency’s (JAXA) already has successful experience in studying small objects, Earlier during the Hayabusa and Hayabusa2 missions were delivered to Earth samples from the asteroids Itokawa and Ryugu.
It is assumed that the spacecraft MMX will collect samples from the Martian moon Phobos, the study of which will allow scientists to learn more not only about the origin of the Martian moons, but also about the past of Mars.
It is believed that the regolith of Phobos contains a significant amount of Martian soil, which fell there after meteorites fell to Mars. And this regolith may still contain biomarkers, indicating the existence of life on the Red Planet in the past.
In addition, the MMX spacecraft will study the possibility of using Phobos as a base for the exploration of Mars, receiving the world’s first detailed data on the topography of this moon.
The MMX spacecraft will include an orbiter and a landing platform that will be equipped with 11 scientific instruments, such as spectrometers, a radiometer, lidar, cameras and a dust analyzer. The landing platform will also bring a small rover, jointly developed with CNES and DLR, to the surface of Phobos. The MMX mission’s four-wheel rover is expected to spend at least 100 days on the surface of Phobos, exploring it with its spectrometer and radiometer.
Soil will be sampled using MMX’s fixed platform from a depth of about 10 cm from the surface. It is expected that not less than 100 grams of soil will be selected and delivered to Earth.
The MMX spacecraft is to be sent to Mars using Japan’s new 63-meter H3 rocket, whose first test flight is expected to take place in the near few days.