ASU postdoc joins team planning first moon sample return since Apollo era

An Arizona State University researcher is helping NASA chart a path back to the moon — this time, to return with pieces of it.

Saira Hamid, Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow in ASU's School of Earth and Space Exploration, has been named to the South Pole–Aitken Basin Sample Return and eXploration (SPARX) Science Definition Team (SDT). The team is defining the science goals and mission plan for NASA's first robotic lunar sample-return mission, which would also mark the first time NASA brings back rocks and soil (lunar samples) from the moon since the Apollo missions ended over 50 years ago.

SPARX is being developed at a time of renewed global interest in the moon, reflected in NASA’s Artemis program and a growing number of commercial and international lunar missions preparing robotic explorers and human crews for the lunar surface.

The South Pole–Aitken Basin is believed to be one of the oldest-forming (~4 billion years ago) and largest impact basins — a huge depression formed by a collision with an asteroid or comet — on the moon. It is a scar on the far side that punched deep enough to expose material from the moon's interior, which means the rocks there may come from layers usually buried far below the surface. Returning samples from this site would give scientists direct access to the moon's earliest preserved rocks, or "geological record." This evidence could fundamentally reshape the understanding of how rocky planets, like Earth, form.

"Returning samples from the South Pole–Aitken Basin would give us our first direct evidence from the deepest layers of the moon, revealing how the lunar crust and mantle formed and evolved," said Hamid.

As a committee member of the SDT, Hamid helps define key science objectives and measurement priorities. She also works on sampling strategies and mission architecture needed to maximize scientific return under real-world engineering constraints.

Hamid’s focus within the team is on lunar robotic exploration and sample return. She applies her background in lunar geology and volcanology to landing-site evaluation, mission science planning, and the interpretation of returned samples. Her work advances scientific return from robotic missions and supports the broader path of sustained lunar exploration. She also brings expertise in the moon’s early dynamo — the process that is thought to have generated its ancient magnetic field — and what it can reveal about the Moon’s interior and thermal history.

"Understanding when and how the moon generated a magnetic field can tell us not only about the moon's interior evolution, but also about the conditions that shaped the early Earth–moon system," Hamid said.

The SPARX SDT brings together planetary scientists and engineers from across the country to ensure the proposed mission is both scientifically ambitious and operationally feasible. If selected and realized by NASA, SPARX would be a landmark achievement in robotic planetary exploration.

Learn more about the SPARX mission at science.nasa.gov/lunar-science/sparx.