The new methods will be developed simultaneously, but both involve a “pass the baton” plan that would see the initial lander blast-off a rocket, which would transfer the rocks to a European spacecraft, which would then subsequently fly them home.
A final decision on the successful proposal will be made in the second half of 2026.
The Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission effectively began in 2021, when the Perseverance rover began exploring the Red Planet’s Jezero Crater. Scientists believe the crater was once home to a lake billions of years ago.
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NASA hopes that by analysing soil samples from Earth, it can establish whether life ever existed on Mars.
“Pursuing two potential paths forward will ensure that NASA is able to bring these samples back from Mars with significant cost and schedule saving compared to the previous plan,” said NASA administrator Bill Nelson.
“These samples have the potential to change the way we understand Mars, our universe, and – ultimately – ourselves. I’d like to thank the team at NASA and the strategic review team, led by Dr Maria Zuber, for their work.”
In September, NASA said it had studied 11 reports from the NASA community and industry on how best to return Martian samples to Earth. A special review was then charged with recommending a primary architecture for the campaign, including associated cost and schedule estimates.
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“NASA’s rovers are enduring Mars’ harsh environment to collect ground-breaking science samples,” said Nicky Fox, who leads NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
“We want to bring those back as quickly as possible to study them in state-of-the-art facilities. Mars Sample Return will allow scientists to understand the planet’s geological history and the evolution of climate on this barren planet where life may have existed in the past and shed light on the early solar system before life began here on Earth.
“This will also prepare us to safely send the first human explorers to Mars.”
The first of the two options, as seen below, will use a sky crane to deliver the lander payload to the surface of Mars, while the second would aim to “capitalise on using new commercial capabilities”.
“For both potential options, the mission’s landed platform will carry a smaller version of the Mars Ascent Vehicle,” said NASA.
“The platform’s solar panels will be replaced with a radioisotope power system that can provide power and heat through the dust storm season at Mars, allowing for reduced complexity.
“The orbiting sample container will hold 30 of the sample tubes containing samples the Perseverance lander has been collecting from the surface of Mars.
“A redesign of the sample loading system on the lander, which will place the samples into the orbiting sample container, simplifies the backward planetary protection implementation by eliminating the accumulation of dust on the outside of the sample container.
“Both mission options rely on a capture, containment and return system aboard ESA’s (European Space Agency) Earth Return Orbiter to capture the orbiting sample container in Mars orbit. ESA is evaluating NASA’s plan.”
The development comes after some of NASA’s most senior scientists travelled to the Pilbara region of Western Australia in 2023 to examine its perfectly preserved “stromatolites” – thought to have been created by some of the earliest forms of life 3.5 billion years ago.
Eric Ianson, director of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington, later said, “This science expedition was a great opportunity for NASA to work with our international partners to study the ancient Earth as it relates to Mars, which may have had a similar past.
“The more we learn about our planet’s evolution, the more we can apply that knowledge to our characterisation of the Red Planet.”
NASA added that the international delegation spent the weeklong expedition to the Pilbara considering the difficulties of locating fossil evidence and how its missions use techniques, including making detailed contextual measurements, to overcome these challenges.
Discussions centred on the difficulty of finding and confirming signs of past life in ancient rocks, even on a planet like Earth, where life is known to have gained a foothold.
Adam Thorn
Adam is a journalist who has worked for more than 40 prestigious media brands in the UK and Australia. Since 2005, his varied career has included stints as a reporter, copy editor, feature writer and editor for publications as diverse as Fleet Street newspaper The Sunday Times, fashion bible Jones, media and marketing website Mumbrella as well as lifestyle magazines such as GQ, Woman’s Weekly, Men’s Health and Loaded. He joined Momentum Media in early 2020 and currently writes for Australian Aviation and World of Aviation.
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