The Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 successfully deploys landers on the surface of the Ryugu asteroid

Two landers from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully landed the Ryugu asteroid after separating from the Hayabusa2 probe in orbit and began transmitting images to the surface of the rock.

The two landers are intended to study the composition of Ryugu, a primitive carbonaceous asteroid close to Earth, with the ultimate aim of collecting more information on the development of the inner planets of the solar system. The craft had already flown very close to the surface of the asteroid to measure its gravitational attraction; While going down to Ryugu this time, Hayabusa2 traveled from its orbit 12 miles (20 kilometers) to less than 100 meters.

According to Space.com, the tiny undercarriages (known as MINERVA-II1A and MINERVA-II1B) briefly lost touch with JAXA after their deployment, but then confirmed they reached the surface in "good condition" by the agency. Now that they have landed safely, both surface lander rovers are able to take advantage of the low gravity environment to bypass Ryugu and study different parts of its surface, according to the Guardian. Although they contain scientific instruments, including cameras, thermometers and accelerometers, one of the objectives of the rovers (which use the torque generated by the rotation of the internal components instead of the wheels) is simply to serve as proof of concept for low-gravity environmental exploration.

Eventually, writes The Guardian, Hayabusa2 will launch a copper missile into the asteroid, creating a crater from which he will take samples of underground materials, as well as the largest MASCOT rover:

In October, the Hayabusa2 probe will deploy an "impactor" that will explode over the asteroid, firing a 2-kg copper missile to detonate a small crater in the surface.

From this crater, the probe will collect "cool" materials not exposed to millennia of winds and radiation, hoping for answers to some fundamental questions about life and the universe, including the contribution of space to the life on Earth.

The probe will also release a Franco-German landing vehicle called MASCOT (Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout) for surface observation.

Hayabusa2 will also deploy another small rover (this time containing optical and ultraviolet LEDs) in 2019. By the end of next year, the spacecraft is expected to begin its journey back to Earth with a cache. samples collected at Ryugu.

"I felt impressed by what we had accomplished in Japan. It's a real charm of deep space exploration, "JAXA spokesman Takashi Kubota told reporters, according to CNN.

While Hayabusa2 is expected to return to Earth by the end of 2020, CNN wrote that the similar asteroid sampling mission in the United States should not be completed until 2023.