New space race to be first back from Mars
Japan is aiming to become the first country to bring back soil from Mars ahead of attempts by the US and China to do so.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency ( Jaxa) is set to launch an exploration probe to Phobos, one of Mars’ two moons, in 2024, with the intention of returning with a 10g soil sample in 2029.
The US and China already have vehicles operating on Mars but the Jaxa mission is due to return before them.
China’s Mars rover is soldiering on after completing its initial programme to explore the red planet and search for frozen water that could provide clues to whether it once supported life.
The National Space Administration said the Zhurong rover completed its 90-day programme on August 15 and was in excellent technical condition and fully charged. It will bring back samples in2030.
Nasa’s Perseverance rover is due to return by 2031 at the earliest.
Tiny quantities of the soil on Phobos, 5,600 miles from the red planet, are expected to be from Mars.
Professor Tomohiro Usui, of Japan’s Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, said it was hoped that collecting samples from several places on Phobos would give a better understanding of the Martian system.
China is also assembling a permanent space station, with three astronauts now aboard the Tianhe core that was put into orbit on April 29.