Japan Launches Phobos Sample Mission

Japan launched the Martian Moons eXploration spacecraft on an H3 rocket, beginning the first mission designed to return samples from a moon of Mars. MMX will study Phobos and Deimos, then collect material from Phobos and return it to Earth. Led by JAXA, the international mission includes NASA and European partners. Scientists do not know whether Phobos and Deimos are captured asteroids or debris from a large Martian impact. The answer matters because Earth-lab samples could reveal Mars’s early history and how moons and planets form. The mission aims to bring back at least 10 grams of Phobos material. MMX is expected to reach the Martian system in 2027, survey the moons, deploy a rover and collect samples.