Deimos and Phobos Interior Explorer Center (DLR) and a study team with representatives of the scientific community and the space industry. The mission would explore the origin and the evolution of the two Martian moons, and would also contribute to the general questions of planetary formation and the workings of the Solar System. The origin of the Martian moons is controversial. Phobos and Deimos both have much in common with carbonaceous C-type asteroids, with spectra, albedo, and density very similar to those of C- or D-type asteroids. Based on their similarity, one hypothesis is that both moons may be captured main-belt asteroids. Another hypothesis is
Exploration of Mars a focus on Phobos. Phobos 1 lost contact on the way to Mars. Phobos 2, while successfully photographing Mars and Phobos, failed before it was set to release two landers to the surface of Phobos. Roughly two-thirds of all spacecraft destined for Mars have failed without completing their missions, and it has a reputation as a difficult space exploration target. Missions that ended prematurely after Phobos 1 and 2 (1988) include (see Probing difficulties section for more details): Following the 1993 failure of the Mars Observer orbiter, the NASA Mars Global Surveyor achieved Mars orbit in 1997. This mission was