This New Martian Moon Mission Could Explain How Life Began

Japan is aiming to complete the first round-trip mission to Mars and its moons in 2024 — here’s how JAXA is preparing for a mission others have failed.
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We’re heading to Mars again. But this time, Japan is aiming to complete the first round-trip mission, not to the Red Planet itself, but to its moons on the Martian Moons eXploration, or MMX

Mars has two moons and JAXA is planning to land on one of them, Phobos. And once the spacecraft is there, it will collect samples, and return them to Earth; bringing back dust and rock that not only haven’t been present on Mars for billions of years but could also potentially help us understand the formation of the red planet and its moons, and by extension, the formation of our solar system.

MMX is hoping that Phobos and Deimos could provide some insight to a few key areas of debate. Starting with, where did these moons come from?

JAXA plans on launching this moon hunting mission some time in 2024, and so far, it’s on track. But before we all get too excited, it will be awhile before we get to check out these samples, as MMX isn’t scheduled to come back until 2029.

Find out more about the new Martian mission in this episode of Countdown To Launch.

#JAXA #Mars #moon #space #seeker #science #elements

Read More:

JAXA's MMX mission will capture Mars and its moons in 8K
https://newatlas.com/space/jaxas-mmx-mars-mission-8k-camera-ultra-high-def-images/
"The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) have teamed up to develop a Super Hi-Vision Camera for JAXA’s Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission that will take the first 8K ultra-high-definition images in orbit around the Red Planet."

Japan to launch a sample-return mission to Mars moon Phobos in 2024
https://www.space.com/japan-mars-moon-phobos-sample-return.html
"The probe will visit both of Mars' moons, Phobos and Deimos, and will touch down on the former for a few hours to snag samples. MMX will then deliver this pristine Phobos material to Earth in 2029, where scientists can scrutinize it in detail."

JAXA Is Going To Land on Phobos, the 14th Best Moon in the Solar System
https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a31044959/jaxa-phobos-mars-mission/
"Astronomers have long proposed a mission to Phobos as a precursor to any mission to the Red Planet. In 2015, the director of Solar System Exploration at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Firouz Naderi, suggested that a quick crewed trip to Phobos might be a nice alternative to Mars."

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