JAXA is planning to launch a phobos sample return mission

[insert_name]

Jaxa plans to send a mission to get samples from phobos and visit demios

http://mmx.isas.jaxa.jp/en/index.html

[Ultimate Steve]

Best of luck to them, then!

[magnemoe]

Nice, very nice, has wondered why none has visited them. They are well know so it should be easier to get founding and you could mix it with an Mars mission. 
Russia had one mission but it failed 
In all practice its an asteroid mission. 

 

[kerbiloid]

Spoiler

1 hour ago, magnemoe said:

Russia had one mission but it failed 

3: Fobos-1,2, Fobos-Grunt.

1 hour ago, magnemoe said:

why none has visited them

Strong orbital defense. Hits human spacecrafts right in LEO.

P.S.
Later (when fusion technologies will be mature) Phobos & Deimos should be eaten and transformed into metal powder, to build O'Neil cylinders.
Probably, JAXA decided not to drag this out.

P.P.S.
I hope, they won't forget to put a Pokemon-Go location there. Just to troll others.

 

[cubinator]

2 hours ago, kerbiloid said:

I hope, they won't forget to put a Pokemon-Go location there. Just to troll others.

Well, when I go to Mars I'll become a WCA Delegate and have a competition hosted there, so that they can rename themselves the "Interplanetary Cubing Association". 

Anyways, I'm happy to see a Martian moon mission bring seriously planned as opposed to just another rough concept. 

[YNM]

The Japanese are always at the best with their meticulous robots.

 

May luck favours them all the time !

[Shpaget]

I don't know why, but sample return missions have a special place in my hearth. For some reason I really like them.

Not that you guys need a reminder, but while we are waiting for the Phobos samples, there is still Hayabusa 2 mission going on. The probe should arrive at 162173 Ryugu in less than a year (July 2018) and come back with some space rocks. Hopefully the changes JAXA has made to Hayabusa 2 will improve on its predecesor's problems in sampling and this time we get some substantial amount of material. In any case, Phobos mission is not going to launch before we get some more info on how H 2 performed, so even more data points for Phobos.

Good luck JAXA!