Japan is set to launch a spacecraft in the world’s first mission to bring back samples from Phobos, one of two small potato-shaped moons orbiting Mars. Scientists hope the mission, expected to last five years, will provide clues about the formation of Phobos and its little brother Deimos, the AP reports, and hopefully even shed light on the origins of life in the solar system. Tuesday’s launch of the spacecraft by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency on a new Japanese H-3 main rocket comes as the United States, China and others consider sending astronauts to Mars. The Phobos samples will provide useful data to scientists who consider using a Martian moon as the basis for a future manned mission to the planet, said Yasuhiro Kawakatsu, MMX project manager.
“Despite their potential importance, Martian moons have never been fully studied,” Kawakatsu said. “They are known as the most significant unclimbed mountains in the solar system.” Japan is leading the international mission that includes equipment and communications support from NASA and other national space agencies. Since the 1960s, dozens of missions have been sent to Mars, but its moons remain largely a mystery. Phobos and Deimos take their names from the Greek mythological personifications of fear and terror, sons of the war god Ares, whose Roman counterpart is Mars. Several Russian attempts to land on Phobos, including one in 2011, have failed.
A key question will be how they formed and what they are made of. Some scientists believe the two crater-riddled irregular bodies could be leftover debris formed after a large celestial object crashed into Mars. Others say the moons could be asteroids from elsewhere. JAXA officials believe the Phobos samples will provide answers. “We can almost certainly reach a conclusion by analyzing (Phobos) soil samples,” said MMX principal investigator Kiyoshi Kuramoto. Scientists chose to collect samples on Phobos primarily because the Moon is closer to Mars than Deimos and therefore may have more information about the planet. Phobos, about 10 to 20 miles in diameter, orbits Mars at a distance of about 3,700 miles three times a day.
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