JAXA Confirms Asteroid Material Captured by Hayabusa2
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has confirmed that the Hayabusa2 spacecraft did indeed obtain samples of the asteroid Ryugu that are now back on Earth. It had no method to determine how much, if any, material was collected when Hayabusa2 touched down on Ryugu until it could open the capsule after its return.
Hayabusa 2 was launched in December 2014 and arrived at Ryugu in June 2018. It deposited three tiny lander/rovers on the surface and also fired an impactor into it to expose subsurface material. The spacecraft briefly touched down twice to collect samples of the surface and then of the exposed subsurface material during its year-and-a-half visit. It left Ryugu in November 2019 and the sample return capsule landed in Woomera, Australia 10 days ago. The main spacecraft is continuing its journey after ejecting the capsule and will visit another asteroid in 2031.
JAXA has not provided specifics on how much material is there, only that a “large number” of dark particles are in “sample chamber A” and thought to be from the first touchdown.
A large number of particles are confirmed to be in “sample chamber A” inside the collected capsule (~11:10 JST on 12/15). This is thought to be the sample from the first touchdown on Ryugu. The photo looks brown, but our team says “black”! The sample return is a great success! pic.twitter.com/34vIx17zOX
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) December 15, 2020
Particles earlier were observed on the outside of the main chambers.
The sample container inside the re-entry capsule was opened on December 14, and we confirmed black grains thought to be from Ryugu were inside. This is outside the main chambers, and likely particles attached to the sample catcher entrance. (English release available tomorrow) https://t.co/NAw1R1cjvy pic.twitter.com/5BfXxfH29h
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) December 14, 2020
The sample capsule also was filled with a gas that scientists later determined also was from Ryugu,
JAXA | Analysis results from the gas collected from the sample container of the asteroid explorer, Hayabusa2https://t.co/5cyt1iaUXk
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) December 15, 2020
Japan was the first country to return samples of an asteroid in 2010 with the Hayabusa mission, although technical problems meant only about 1,500 grains were collected. From the photo in the tweet, it is clear they did much better this time and they still have two other chambers, B and C, to open.
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx just collected samples of a different asteroid, Bennu, that will return to Earth in 2023. The two space agencies will share their samples.
User Comments
SpacePolicyOnline.com has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the comments and to remove any materials it deems inappropriate. We do not post comments that include links to other websites since we have no control over that content nor can we verify the security of such links.