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Martian Moons eXploration
Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) is a robotic space probe set for launch in 2026 to bring back the first samples from Mars' largest moon Phobos. Developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and announced on 9 June 2015, MMX will land and collect samples from Phobos once or twice, along with conducting Deimos flyby observations and monitoring Mars's climate.
The mission aims to provide key information to help determine whether the Martian moons are captured asteroids or the result of a larger body hitting Mars. JAXA and other Japanese government officials officially approved the MMX project to proceed into development on 19 February 2020.
The spacecraft will enter orbit around Mars, then transfer to Phobos, and land once or twice and gather sand-like regolith particles using a simple pneumatic system. The lander mission aims to retrieve a minimum 10 g (0.35 oz) of samples. The spacecraft will then take off from Phobos and make several flybys of the smaller moon Deimos before sending the Return Module back to Earth, arriving in 2031.
The total launch mass is 4000 kg including 1900 kg of propellant. The mission architecture uses three modules: Propulsion module (1800 kg), Exploration module (150 kg) and the Return module (1050 kg). With the mass of Deimos and Phobos being too small to capture a satellite, it is not possible to orbit the Martian moons in the usual sense. However, orbits of a special kind, referred to as quasi-satellite orbits (QSO), can be sufficiently stable to allow many months of operations in the vicinity of the moon.
The mission leader is Yasuhiro Kawakatsu.
NASA, DLR, and CNES are also participating in the project, and will provide scientific instruments. NASA will contribute a neutron and gamma-ray spectrometer called MEGANE (an acronym for Mars-moon Exploration with GAmma rays and NEutrons, which also means "eyeglasses" in Japanese), CNES the Near IR Spectrometer (NIRS4/MacrOmega). CNES is also contributing expertise in flight dynamics to plan the mission's orbiting and landing manoeuvres.
Development and testing of key components, including the sampler, is ongoing. As of December 2023, MMX is scheduled to be launched in 2026, and will return to Earth five years later in 2031.
ESA will provide deep space communication equipment: a transponder and power amplifier, and will provide ground station support from the Estrack network.
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Martian Moons eXploration AI simulator
(@Martian Moons eXploration_simulator)
Martian Moons eXploration
Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) is a robotic space probe set for launch in 2026 to bring back the first samples from Mars' largest moon Phobos. Developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and announced on 9 June 2015, MMX will land and collect samples from Phobos once or twice, along with conducting Deimos flyby observations and monitoring Mars's climate.
The mission aims to provide key information to help determine whether the Martian moons are captured asteroids or the result of a larger body hitting Mars. JAXA and other Japanese government officials officially approved the MMX project to proceed into development on 19 February 2020.
The spacecraft will enter orbit around Mars, then transfer to Phobos, and land once or twice and gather sand-like regolith particles using a simple pneumatic system. The lander mission aims to retrieve a minimum 10 g (0.35 oz) of samples. The spacecraft will then take off from Phobos and make several flybys of the smaller moon Deimos before sending the Return Module back to Earth, arriving in 2031.
The total launch mass is 4000 kg including 1900 kg of propellant. The mission architecture uses three modules: Propulsion module (1800 kg), Exploration module (150 kg) and the Return module (1050 kg). With the mass of Deimos and Phobos being too small to capture a satellite, it is not possible to orbit the Martian moons in the usual sense. However, orbits of a special kind, referred to as quasi-satellite orbits (QSO), can be sufficiently stable to allow many months of operations in the vicinity of the moon.
The mission leader is Yasuhiro Kawakatsu.
NASA, DLR, and CNES are also participating in the project, and will provide scientific instruments. NASA will contribute a neutron and gamma-ray spectrometer called MEGANE (an acronym for Mars-moon Exploration with GAmma rays and NEutrons, which also means "eyeglasses" in Japanese), CNES the Near IR Spectrometer (NIRS4/MacrOmega). CNES is also contributing expertise in flight dynamics to plan the mission's orbiting and landing manoeuvres.
Development and testing of key components, including the sampler, is ongoing. As of December 2023, MMX is scheduled to be launched in 2026, and will return to Earth five years later in 2031.
ESA will provide deep space communication equipment: a transponder and power amplifier, and will provide ground station support from the Estrack network.