Technology Today – A sample of an asteroid arriving in Japan after a 6-year flight

Samples of an asteroid 300 million kilometers from Earth arrived in Japan on Tuesday, to cheers and smiles after a six-year journey by a space probe to search for the origin of the life. According to Reuters. The Hayabusa 2 spacecraft was launched in December 2014 from Earth to asteroid Ryugu, and managed to land on its surface, which was rugged beyond expectations, to collect samples of the asteroid’s soil in a capsule. This capsule landed in Australia on Sunday and was transported to Japan. The final leg of her journey was by truck to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) research center on the outskirts of Tokyo, where she was greeted by a crowd of enthusiastic researchers. “The capsule is back,” project manager Yuichi Tsuda said at a press conference. I went out to the door to see her. Asteroids are believed to have formed at the start of the solar system, and scientists say the sample may contain organic matter that could have contributed to life on Earth.

The Hayabusa 2 spacecraft orbiting the asteroid Ryugu for a few months before landing, then used small explosives to detonate a crater and collect the resulting debris. Projections indicate that she collected around 100 milligrams. Once the capsule was lowered, the spacecraft changed course in space. Travel restrictions and landings imposed by the coronavirus pandemic were another hurdle for researchers, as researchers at one point pondered whether to delay the return of the capsule. The next step is to open the capsule. Researcher Tomohiro Usui said that by next week he might find out if you’ve gathered enough documents, indicating that the work will be very accurate. “We have to be careful not to break the capsule or drop it … Once that is done, the tension will drop a bit,” he added.

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