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NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission is dead

456 points · 391 comments · Muhammad523

  1. peri-cl · · focus · HN ↗
    This article only obliquely mentions in the last paragraphs, but there's a parallel Chinese program that recently brought back samples from the moon, and will attempt Mars sample return, launching in 2028,

    <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Tianwen-3" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Tianwen-3

    1. lukeify · · focus · HN ↗
      The NASA&#x2F;ESA MSR was of substantially higher quality, mind you. The M2020 rover specifically picked up samples of high scientific value to be returned. The Chinese return mission will only return what it finds from its direct landing site.
      1. ok_dad · · focus · HN ↗
        It would be cool if NASA worked with the Chinese agency to collect those cores using their rocket, it would be a win win.
        1. duskwuff · · focus · HN ↗
          Unfortunately, they can&#x27;t:

          <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Wolf_Amendment" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Wolf_Amendment

          1. Gagarin1917 · · focus · HN ↗
            Also they’re no where near each other. These Chinese rover cannot get there.

            Also also, if China were to create a new mission to collect them, they would see their costs balloon to unsustainable levels as well, as the issue is how the mission is designed. The samples are all over the place and would need a rover specifically designed to collect them and return them to a launcher.

            The US Mars sample return project was always half baked in the hopes that doing something would garner funding for the rest of the mission.

            1. NetMageSCW · · focus · HN ↗
              Not true - only ten samples were dropped off at a “depot” close to each other. The rest are on-board Perseverance and can be picked up all at once, which was always the primary plan.
              1. Gagarin1917 · · focus · HN ↗
                The point is that they’d have to be picked up and retrieved at all, even from Perseverance.

                That alone is a separate multibillion dollar program just to do that.

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