Overview
It was a space mission aimed at visiting a small asteroid and returning a sample to Earth for analysis in laboratory. It has been proposed to the program Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 of the European Space Agency (ESA) in June 2007 and selected for an assessment study in November 2007. This mission is proposed as a joint mission ESA-JAXA (Japan Exploration Space Agency). The in-situ investigation and sample analysis will allow us to improve our knowledge of the physical and chemical properties of a small Near-Earth Object (NEO) which is believed to have kept the original composition of the solar nebula in which planet formed. Thus, it will provide some constraints to the models of planet formation and some information on how life may have been brought to Earth. Information on the physical structure will help defining efficient mitigation strategies against a potential threatening object.
Read more about this topic: Marco Polo (spacecraft)