Mars Sample Return Mission
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The Mars Sample Return Mission is a joint project between NASA and ESA to collect rock and dust samples from Mars and to return them to Earth for analysis. It will be the first mission to collect rock samples from another planet. However, samples have been returned from comets as well as the Moon. It is to be launched either during the mid 2010s or the early 2020s.
The scenario of the mission will depend on the date of launch and performance of the launcher. Before 2018, only launchers such as Ariane 5 and the US EELV are available, while after 2018, the Ares V should be available, allowing more simple mission scenarios.
The mission will consist of an orbiter, a lander, and possibly a rover. The orbiter is designed to deliver the lander/rover probe to Mars and return sample rocks back to Earth for analysis. The lander will feature a reascent component in order to deliver the samples to the orbiter. The rover's main objective is to collect a variety of rock samples using many instruments provided by scientists from NASA and ESA. If the rover is cancelled, the lone lander would possibly have a robotic arm and/or hand to collect rock samples in replace. But the lander could also have a proposed drilling machine to take samples from the martian interior.
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| Flybys: Mariner 4 | Mariner 6 | Mariner 7 | Mars 4 | |
| Orbiters: Mariner 9 | Mars 2 | Mars 3 | Mars 5 | Mars 6 | Viking 1 | Viking 2 | Phobos 2 | Mars Global Surveyor | Mars Odyssey | Mars Express Orbiter | Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter | |
| Landers and Rovers: Mars 3 | Viking 1 | Viking 2 | Mars Pathfinder | Beagle 2 | Spirit rover | Opportunity rover | |
| Future: Phoenix Scout | Mars Science Laboratory | Mars 2011 | ExoMars | Astrobiology Field Laboratory | Phobos-Grunt | |
| See also: Mars | Exploration of Mars | Colonization of Mars | |
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