Wake up, NASA!
JPL-ACE asked a valid question which I also wondered about, yet you have no response?
1, Why is a a risky secondary fetch rover needed?
2. Why could the Mars 2020/Perseverance rover not just trundle up to the Mars Ascent Vehicle and hand over the samples?
3, Also, why risk sending the sample container unchaperoned into Mars orbit? Connected to an ascent vehicle with presumably some communication ability might make it easier found?
4. And please explain why to take the insane risk of tumbling samples back to Earth without a parachute?
5. Why not deliver it to the insanely expensive ISS long in orbit which has a Canadarm and regular exchange of humans and cargo to Earth?
6. Why not, better yet, just ask your military to pick up the sample with their very manuevereble X38 mini-space-shuttle?
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Just asking ;-)
Abe53
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