JAXA launches MMX mission to Mars
The gist
Japan's JAXA launched its MMX spacecraft on an H3 rocket to sample Mars's moon Phobos.
Success would bring the first samples from a moon other than Earth's.
How it unfolded
- Oct 19, 2026MMX lifted off on a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H3 rocket from Pad-2 at Tanegashima Space Center's Yoshinobu Launch Complex at 3:41 p.m. EDT (4:41 a.m. local time in Japan on Oct. 20).
- Oct 19, 2026The spacecraft was released from the rocket's upper stage right on schedule, about 71 minutes after liftoff, drawing loud cheers in mission control.
- Aug 2027MMX is scheduled to arrive at Mars, where its propulsion module will perform an orbital insertion burn to place it in a quasi-satellite orbit around Phobos.