NASA has scheduled a media teleconference for 4 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 15, to preview its contributions to the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission led by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the agency announced Oct. 8. The mission is scheduled to launch from JAXA's Tanegashima Space Center on Monday, Oct. 19 EDT, which is Tuesday, Oct. 20 in Japan.

Briefing participants include Lindsay Hays, acting director of NASA's Planetary Science Division; Tom Statler, MMX program executive and scientist; David Lawrence, principal investigator for the MEGANE instrument at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory; and Kris Zacny, vice president at Blue Origin's Honeybee Robotics. NASA said its contributions include the MEGANE gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer, the spacecraft's surface sampler mechanism, and communications and navigation support from the Deep Space Network, along with funding for U.S. scientists on the MMX science team.

According to the agency, the spacecraft will arrive at Mars in August 2027 to survey Phobos and Deimos. After studying Phobos in detail, it is planned to collect a surface sample no earlier than December 2028 and deliver it to Earth in 2031. NASA said the work was funded through its Discovery Program, managed by Marshall Space Flight Center.