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A Japanese probe sent Friday to examine an asteroid located 300 million kilometers from the Earth, looking for clues about the origin of life and about the solar system, landed successfully, announced scientists.
Data from the Hayabusa2 probe showed changes in speed and direction, indicating that it had landed on the asteroid and was returning to its orbit position, according to JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) officials .
A live webcast of the control room showed dozens of JAXA staff members nervous surveillance of the data before the touchdown, before applauding after receiving a signal from the probe, Hayabusa, 2 have landed.
"We confirmed the hit," said AFP Chisato Ikuta, spokesperson for JAXA.
This computer image provided by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) shows the unmanned Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 approaching the Ryugu asteroid. Photo: JAXA via AP
The probe was to shoot a bullet at the Ryugu asteroid, to stir the surface material, which she will then collect for analysis on Earth.
It is thought that the asteroid contains relatively large amounts of organic matter and water for about 4.6 billion years, when the solar system was born.
Hayabusa2 will eventually trigger an "impactor" to remove materials below Ryugu's surface, allowing the collection of "cool" materials not exposed to millennia of wind and radiation.
Scientists hope that these samples will provide answers to some fundamental questions about life and the universe, especially if elements of space have helped to create life on Earth.
After landing, the spacecraft was to return to orbit over Ryugu, and more impacts would be scheduled later in the year.
The communication with Hayabusa2 is sometimes interrupted because its antennas are not always directed towards the Earth and it could take several more days to confirm that the bullet was well drawn to allow the collection of samples.
The mission was not quite simple and the landing of the probe was initially planned for last year.
But it was postponed after studies revealed that the surface of the asteroid was more rugged than expected, forcing the JAXA to take longer to find a suitable landing site.
The Hayabusa2 mission, priced at around 30 billion yen, was launched in December 2014 and is expected to return to Earth with its samples in 2020.
The photos of Ryugu – which means "dragon palace" in Japanese and refers to a castle at the bottom of the ocean in an ancient Japanese tale – show an asteroid shaped router on the rough surface.
Hayabusa2 observes the surface of the asteroid with its camera and detection equipment, but also sent two tiny MINERVA-II rover robots as well as the French-German MASCOT robot for easy surface observation.
Scientists are already receiving data from these probes deployed on the surface of the asteroid.
The MASCOT observation robot, weighing 10 kg, is equipped with sensors and can take images at several wavelengths, study minerals with a microscope, measure surface temperatures and measure magnetic fields.
Of a size comparable to that of a large refrigerator, Hayabusa2 is equipped with solar panels and is the successor to the first JAXA Asteroid Explorer, Hayabusa – in Japanese for Falcon.
This probe returned from a small potato-shaped asteroid in 2010 containing dust samples, despite several setbacks during its epic Odyssey, which lasted seven years, and was hailed as a scientific triumph.
© AFP 2019
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