Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that Australia has agreed to cooperate with Japan in a space mission without precedent.
Japan plans to land on Phobos, one of the moons of Mars, and collect samples in order to gain a greater understanding of the solar system.
The request from Japan is for the spacecraft, nicknamed MMX, to land in Woomera, South Australia, when it returns to Earth.
This marks an exciting development in international relations and space exploration.
The Mission
Japan’s space agency, JAXA, is planning the mission to Phobos with the hope of collecting samples that could provide clues about the solar system’s formation. JAXA hopes that by touch down on Phobos, they will be able to better understand Mars’ gravity as well as obtain data about the moon’s surface conditions and environment.
The samples collected will be returned to Earth aboard the MMX spacecraft for further analysis.
The Significance of this Request
This isn’t the first time Japan has partnered with another country for a space mission – in fact, JAXA has had many successful partnerships with NASA – but this request is significant because it’s the first time Japan has asked another country to host its return journey.
Because Woomera is located in a desert area with little interference from city lights or air traffic, it makes for an ideal location to retrieve samples from outer space.
This marks an important step in Australia-Japan relations and cements our reputation as a world leader in space exploration.
Australia has agreed to help Japan with aspace mission that will see a Japanese spacecraft land in Woomera, South Australia, after collecting samples from one of the moons of Mars.
This marks an exciting development not just for international relations and space exploration, but for Australia as well.
As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “this request from Japan is for the spacecraft, nicknamed MMX, to land in Woomera in South Australia with its precious samples when it returns to Earth.” Stay tuned for more details on this developing story.
