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Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
With regard to space travel, human beings are just beginning. The robots on the other hand are way in front of.
We have the Curiosity Rover does its work on Mars, the Parker Solar Probe is on the road to the sun.
And now, the Japanese Space Agency JAXA has landed two fucking asteroid. Best of all: they returned photographs.
We are sorry for making you wait! MINERVA-II1 comprises two vehicles, 1a and 1b. Both rovers are confirmed to have landed on Ryugu's surface. They are in good condition and have transmitted photos and data. We have also confirmed that they are moving to the surface. #asteroidlanding
– HAYABUSA2 @ JAXA (@ haya2e_jaxa) September 22, 2018
The MINERVA rovers have been launched since the Japanese probe Hayabusa 2, which has been running for several months around an asteroid called Ryuga. The probe is on an asteroid sample return mission and plans to study the asteroid and return to Earth in December 2020.
This is a photo of MINERVA-II1. The color photo was captured by Rover-1A on September 21st at approximately 1:08 pm JST, immediately after the separation of the spacecraft. Hayabusa2 is at the top and Ryugu's surface is below. The picture is blurry because the mobile is spinning. #asteroidlanding pic.twitter.com/CeeI5ZjgmM
– HAYABUSA2 @ JAXA (@ haya2e_jaxa) September 22, 2018
Two MINERVA rovers were deployed on 21 September and both managed to land. The first shot returned is visible above. It's a bit blurry – mainly because the vehicle was spinning when it fired.
Photo taken by Rover-1B on September 21st at about 1:07 pm EST. He was captured just after the separation of the spaceship. The surface of Ryugu is lower right. The foggy upper left is due to the reflection of sunlight. 1B seems to turn slowly after separation, minimizing image blur. pic.twitter.com/P71gsC9VNI
– HAYABUSA2 @ JAXA (@ haya2e_jaxa) September 22, 2018
The picture above is much clearer. Yes, that's the asteroid itself in the lower right corner of the photo.
This dynamic photo was captured by Rover-1A on September 22 around 11:44 AM JST. He was caught on the surface of Ryugu during a jump. The left half is Ryugu's surface, while the white area on the right is due to sunlight. (Hayabusa2 Project) pic.twitter.com/IQLsFd4gJu
– HAYABUSA2 @ JAXA (@ haya2e_jaxa) September 22, 2018
Above, the last shot sent by the Hayabusa probe is absolutely incredible.
Hayabusa intends to land a larger rover, called MASCOT, in October of this year. The project hopes to bring back samples of asteroids to Earth when it returns in December of next year.
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