A Japanese spacecraft blasted off towards Mars on Tuesday for an unprecedented mission to investigate its enigmatic moons and retrieve samples. This five-year endeavor, a collaboration of five global space agencies, aims to land a robotic explorer and a rover on Phobos, the larger of Mars’s two diminutive satellites.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency spearheaded the ambitious sampling initiative, launching the spacecraft from Tanegashima Island’s main spaceport before dawn. An hour later, officials confirmed the successful separation of the spacecraft from the rocket’s upper stage, sparking jubilation among flight controllers.

While NASA has achieved nine successful Mars landings in the past five decades and China landed a mission in 2021, no previous mission has ventured to Phobos or its companion Deimos. Additionally, no entity has ever retrieved samples from Mars or its moons. If the mission succeeds, samples containing dust, soil, and rocks from Phobos will reach Earth in 2031.

Tom Statler, a NASA astrophysicist involved in the project, expressed the excitement and anticipation surrounding the mission. Japan’s prior success in two asteroid sample return missions provides an advantage for this mission.

Phobos, a small, irregularly shaped rock around 22 kilometers in diameter, holds vital clues about the formation of Mars’s moons and potentially other moons in the solar system. The mission, dubbed MMX (Martian Moons Exploration), with a budget of $812 million, features a substantial five-ton spacecraft expected to arrive at Mars by late next summer. The spacecraft will rendezvous with Phobos in its close orbit around Mars and release the French-German rover named Idefix, after the Asterix comics’ white terrier.

Idefix, about the size of a microwave oven, will autonomously land on Phobos, utilizing its unique low-gravity environment. The rover is equipped to self-right if it lands upside down; however, challenges may arise if it encounters soft soil or obstacles. It will serve as a safety scout for the subsequent phase of the mission, exploring Phobos for 100 days to aid in selecting suitable sample collection sites for the mothership’s descent in late 2028 or 2029.

The stationary lander, equipped with drills and vacuum systems, will spend two hours on Phobos gathering at least 10 grams of material before launching back to Earth. The mission will also include flybys of Deimos before departing the Martian vicinity in 2030 for a sample delivery on Earth in 2031.

Scientists aim to unravel the origins of Mars’s moons, investigating whether Phobos and Deimos resulted from a collision between Mars and a celestial body or were captured asteroids. The discovery of Mars traces on Phobos could provide valuable insights into planetary and moon formation processes, potentially shedding light on the origins of life.

This groundbreaking mission not only promises scientific advancements but also sets the stage for future Mars exploration endeavors. With China planning a sample return mission in 2028 and NASA contemplating the retrieval of samples collected by the Perseverance rover, the race to unlock the secrets of the Martian system is heating up. Japan and China are both eyeing 2031 for their sample return missions, making significant investments to secure their place in Mars exploration history.