JAXA's MMX Phobos Sample-Return Mission Has Two Launch Dates

JAXA's MMX mission has two listed launch dates for an H3 launch from Tanegashima Space Center. The dates are 2026-10-19 and 2026-10-20.

The launch plan pairs the H3 rocket with Tanegashima Space Center. The two recorded launch dates are 2026-10-19 and 2026-10-20.

JAXA leads the mission. NASA, ESA, CNES and DLR are listed as partners.

The mission is described as the first effort to gather material from Phobos and bring it back to Earth. Its milestones also include first spacecraft to orbit Phobos, first landing on a moon other than Earth's moon, first collection of samples from the Phobos surface, and first Earth return following a visit to the Mars system.

The mission's listed destinations include Mars orbit and Phobos orbit.

MMX carries 11 science instruments. The main spacecraft's payload includes seven science instruments, a radiation monitor, two high-resolution cameras and two sampling devices. The Idefix rover has four science instruments.

For readers tracking the lunar industry, MMX is a moon mission with sample-return milestones: first Phobos orbit, first landing on a moon other than Earth's moon, and first Earth return following a Mars-system visit.

The effort also shows international cooperation among JAXA, NASA, ESA, CNES and DLR, with a payload split between a main spacecraft and the Idefix rover.

The facts list MMX's landing date as 2030 and its landing site as Phobos. They also list Australia as the sample return capsule's landing site.