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JAXA MMX Martian moon exploration mission

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2026-10-25 08:23 UTC → 2026-10-25 23:34 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is preparing the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, an international collaboration involving NASA, ESA, CNES, DLR, and INTA. The mission aims to resolve scientific debates regarding whether the Martian moons, Phobos and Deimos, formed from impact debris or were captured asteroids. On October 20, 2026, JAXA successfully launched the MMX mission via an H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center. Following a successful separation from the launch vehicle, the 4,480-kilogram unmanned probe began its journey toward the Mars system. ~~This robotic endeavor marks~~ Approximately 68 percent of the ~~beginning~~ spacecraft's total weight consists of ~~a planned five-year mission~~ propellant to facilitate the complex landing and return ~~Phobos regolith to Earth. The project, costing approximately $578 million, involves a spacecraft composed~~ maneuvers required by the low gravity of ~~three modules~~ Phobos. The mission is expected to reach Mars around August 2027. To support the arrival period, the European Space Agency (ESA) is expected to utilize its Mars Express ~~probe, which has been orbiting Mars since 2003,~~ probe to assist with joint observations and imaging of the landing site. Upon arrival, the mission will deploy the Idefix rover, a joint development by DLR and CNES. The approximately 25-kilogram rover is scheduled to land on Phobos in 2029 to spend roughly 100 days examining the surface and identifying a safe landing site. Due to the extremely low gravity on Phobos, mission leaders have described the landing and driving operations as ‘absolute robotic new territory’. The spacecraft will then orbit Phobos for approximately three years to collect at least ten grams of surface material using a dual sampling mechanism that combines a Japanese mechanical corer with a NASA pneumatic sampler. The spacecraft will also observe the Martian moon Deimos before returning to Earth. If successful, the collected samples are expected to return to Earth via Australia in 2031 for laboratory analysis.

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