Mars Sample Return (MSR): Planning for Returned Sample Science.

Abstract

Mars Sample Return (MSR) has been a high priority for the planetary science community for more than four decades. Analyzing martian samples in terrestrial laboratories would advance our understanding of Mars in multiple ways that are impossible using in situ missions alone. The overall MSR concept includes three distinct phases: 1. Selecting and collecting scientifically suitable samples on Mars, currently being carried out by the Mars 2020 mission with the Perseverance rover; 2. Retrieving the samples on Mars and transporting them to Earth; 3. Receiving the samples on Earth, making them available for analysis by the science community for decades to come. With the recent successful collection of the first samples by the Perseverance rover and the ongoing progress by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) on the development of the missions that could retrieve and transport the samples to Earth, MSR continues to move closer to becoming a reality. As Perseverance and the MSR retrieval and return missions progress, it becomes increasingly imperative to develop detailed plans for the receipt and analysis of the samples on Earth to ensure that the full science potential of MSR can be realized.