Sample Return – Astronomy Now

3 April 2026

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OSIRIS-REx sample collection site selected on asteroid Bennu

16 December 2019 Astronomy Now

Mission planners with NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft have selected a challenging but scientifically rich sample collection site on the asteroid Bennu.

NASA confirms contribution to Japanese-led Mars mission

20 November 2017 Stephen Clark

NASA announced Thursday it will fund development of a scientific instrument that will fly on Japan’s Martian Moons Exploration mission, a robotic probe set for launch in 2024 to bring back the first samples from Mars’ largest moon Phobos.

China sets November launch for lunar sample return mission

25 January 2017 Stephen Clark

China plans to launch a robotic mission to return samples from the lunar surface, the first such mission in four decades, in November on top of the country’s new heavy-lift Long March 5 rocket, according to state media reports.