Phobos-Soil (Phobos-Grunt) is the first mission dedicated to the study of the Martian moon Phobos. It will deploy a spacecraft in an orbit around Mars that is quasi synchronous with Phobos. The spacecraft will also carry a lander to perform in situ investigations of the Phobos regolith and a return capsule that will bring pristine samples back to Earth.

The mission builds on Russia's long heritage in space science and robotic exploration.

In its launch configuration, the spacecraft will be made up of four key parts:

• Orbiter and lander system
• A Phobos descent module
• A return module
• A return capsule

A Chinese orbiter, Yinghuo-1 (YH-1), will piggyback with the mission to be delivered in orbit around Mars.

(Above, top) Phobos-Soil (Phobos-Grunt) spacecraft design; (Above, bottom) Design of orbiter and lander system; (Right) The Phobos-Soil and Yinghuo-1 spacecraft in the cleanroom of Lavochkin. Credit: Lavochkin Association

Spacecraft key facts

A Russian Federal Space Agency mission, Phobos-Soil (Phobos Grunt) was originally proposed by the Council on Space of the Russian Academy of Science. The Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IKI RAS) leads science investigations. The Lavochkin Association is the prime contractor for the space segment. ESA is providing ground station support.