AI Insight
The Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission is scheduled to launch on October 19-20, 2026, from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center aboard an H3 rocket. Led by JAXA in collaboration with NASA, CNES, DLR, and ESA, MMX will be the first mission to collect and return a sample from Phobos, one of Mars's two moons, back to Earth.
Why it matters
This mission could provide crucial insights into the origin of Mars's moons and the early formation of the solar system. Analyzing Phobos samples in Earth-based laboratories will enable more sophisticated testing than possible with spacecraft instruments alone.
Understand the Science
The Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission is set to launch into space on a H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center at 04:41 JST on 20 October 2026 (20:41 BST / 21:41 CEST on 19 October 2026). MMX will be the first mission to collect a sample from Mars’s moon Phobos and bring it back to Earth.
MMX is led by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the French space agency (CNES), the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the European Space Agency (ESA).