Mars Sample Return Science Planning Group 2 (MSPG-2): Initial Report

With the Statement of Intent signed in 2018, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have jointly defined roles and responsibilities for leading respective elements of a potential Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign. The scientific benefits of MSR would be immense, though would come with some unique challenges. Thus, extensive planning efforts are required to ensure the science return would be maximized through the international science partnership that would provide fair and competitive opportunities for the science community and equitable access to the samples.

The 2019 ESA- and NASA-chartered MSR Science Planning Group (MSPG) developed a foundation to formulate and implement an overarching science strategy for handling scientifically-selected samples brought from Mars. Their report was completed and posted in October 2019 (https://mepag.jpl.nasa.gov/reports.cfm). Building from this effort, the MSPG-2 was chartered in April 2020 to further develop many of the concepts therein and specifically to address MSR science and curation planning.

Composed of 25 competitively selected scientists representing 11 countries, the MSPG-2 has been tasked with: (1) drafting an overall Science Management Plan (SMP) for the end-to-end MSR campaign; (2) identifying technical issues that could impact the scientific utility of the samples, including sample sterilization and penetrative imaging (e.g., synchrotron or CT scanning); (3) developing approaches and a working list of high-level requirements for a potential Sample Receiving Facility (SRF), and; (4) compiling a list of key decision points related to the samples from the perspectives of science, curation, and planetary protection.

The group kicked off its work in June 2020. Sub-teams focusing on the SMP, sterilization effects, and curation have been formulated to provide early deliberations that will feed into subsequent planetary protection discussions and SRF requirements development. Final products are anticipated in mid-2021. This presentation will provide an initial status report from the MSPG-2 and actively solicits feedback from the AGU scientific community.