Japan to launch world-first mission to moon of Mars

Japan plans to launch the MMX probe on Tuesday aboard an H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center. The spacecraft is expected to reach Mars around August next year, orbit Phobos, collect at least 10 grams of surface material, and eventually return the samples to Earth. Conducted with US and European space agencies, the mission aims to clarify whether Mars’s moons formed through a giant impact or were captured asteroids, while supporting preparations for eventual human exploration. MMX will also observe Deimos but will not land there.