Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa 2 has reached its asteroid target

At approximately 9:35 AM Japanese Standard Time on June 27th, the JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) spacecraft Hayabusa 2 successfully rendezvoused with its target, the diamond-shaped asteroid 162173 Ryugu. The spacecraft launched on December 3rd, 2014, and has spent the last three and a half years en route. The spacecraft is now just 20 kilometers away from Ryugu.

It's a giant step for the mission, as the Japanese team has confirmed that Hayabusa 2 can maintain a constant distance from the asteroid. This means that the journey phase of the mission is over and the exploration of the strangely shaped asteroid can begin.

The shape actually needs to be taken into account as JAXA prepares a plan to explore Ryugu based on what the spacecraft has learned en route. Over the next month, Hayabusa 2 will close the distance to Ryugu to just 5 kilometers. The spacecraft will also map the surface of the asteroid. Depending on how that process goes, the spacecraft could land on the Ryugu as early as September or October. Hayabusa 2 will return a sample of the asteroid to Earth in late 2020.

Hayabusa 2 isn't the only asteroid mission we have to look forward to. NASA's OSIRIS-REx will rendezvous with the asteroid Bennu in August, and more asteroid sample return missions are being planned in coming years.

Source: JAXA



via Engadget RSS Feed https://ift.tt/2Mt6LqV
RSS Feed

If New feed item from http://www.engadget.com/rss-full.xml, then send me

IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs?
Read more