Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry (GEOKhI): Scientific results in 2011–2015

GEOKhI was the initiator of the LunaGlob and PhobosGrunt projects (Galimov et al., 1998). The main objectives of the LunaGlob project were exploration of the Moons interior structure and searching evidence for the presence of water in the lunar polar craters. The main objective of the PhobosGrunt project was the return of soil samples from the surface of Phobos (Fig.1). GEOKhI proposed a proprietary analytical scheme for studying soil samples, which became the basis for the project and involved isotopic, geochemical and mineralogical analyses. The three-oxygen isotope data (16 1718) from this study could be used to clarify whether Phobos is captured or formed in situ. The study of organic compounds from Phobos was essential for the evaluation of the probability of the origin of life on Mars. The proposed analytical scheme involved isotopic, geochemical and mineralogical analyses. Work on these projects began in 1997. If these projects had been implemented, Russia would have recaptured global leadership in space research. This however did not happen (Galimov, 2015). I will not go into details about many interesting solutions that have been developed under these projects over almost 20 years, yet I will give a brief sketch of the scientific payload mounted on the PhobosGrunt spacecraft, which failed to complete its mission in 2011.