Japan ’s Hayabusa 2 successfully touches down on Ryugu asteroid

The probe was due to fire a pellet into the surface of the asteroid to try to capture dustA Japanese spacecraft has successfully touched down on a speeding asteroid 300 million kilometres from the Earth as it attempts an audacious manoeuvre to collect samples and bring them back for scientists to study.The Hayabusa 2 probe touched down on the asteroid Ryugu at around 11:30pm GMT on Thursday. Data from the probe showed changes in speed and direction, indicating it had reached the asteroid ’s surface, according to officials from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).Continue reading...

Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - February 22, 2019 Category: Science Authors: Kate Lyons, and Ian Sample, science editor Tags: Space Science Japan World news Asia Pacific Source Type: news