Japan has inaugurated a pioneering mission to return samples from the Martian moon Phobos, with the MMX probe lifting off aboard the flagship H3 rocket. The launch, which took place before dawn from the Tanegashima Space Centre, was declared a success by JAXA. The spacecraft is now en route to the Martian system, a journey culminating in a landing on the potato-shaped moon.
Upon reaching Mars's orbit next summer, the spacecraft will deploy the Idefix rover, a Franco-German collaboration. The rover will spend 100 days surveying Phobos's surface to ascertain safe landing and drilling locations. Subsequently, a stationary lander will touch down, spending just two hours drilling and vacuuming at least 10 grams of regolith.
The $578 million mission, involving five space agencies, represents an historic first. Scientists anticipate the samples will shed light on the formation of Phobos and Deimos, offering profound insights into the origins of the solar system. The findings are also expected to shape the trajectory of future crewed expeditions to Mars. The project chief described it as a 'once-in-a-lifetime chance.'
Sources: theguardian.com / reuters.com
The words in bold are from the article.
| 1. inaugurated | a. determine |
| 2. pioneering | b. deep |
| 3. culminating | c. groundbreaking |
| 4. deploy | d. surface debris |
| 5. ascertain | e. climaxing |
| 6. regolith | f. dispatch |
| 7. shed light | g. elucidate |
| 8. profound | h. path |
| 9. trajectory | i. journeys |
| 10. expeditions | j. commenced |
1.j 2.c 3.e 4.f 5.a 6.d 7.g 8.b 9.h 10.i