Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa 2 will try to bring a bit of Ryugu back to Earth.
JAXA
Let’s fire a bullet at an asteroid. This might sound like a plot point from a sci-fi show, but it’s about to become reality this week when Japan’s space agency JAXA directs its Hayabusa 2 spacecraft to go grab a sample of an asteroid.
Hayabusa 2 arrived at the asteroid Ryugu in mid-2018 and has already delivered two rovers and a lander to the surface. But touching down on the rock with its sampler horn is a sensitive operation.
JAXA delayed the touchdown from last fall after discovering Ryugu’s surface was much rockier than expected. The new sample collection time is set for Friday, Feb. 22 at 8 a.m. Japan time, which works out to Thursday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. Pacific in the US.
Touchdown #haya2_TD is planned for Feb 22 ~8am JST! We will have a live web broadcast from the control room (link coming soon) with English translation.
Have questions? Ask us at the #haya2_QA hashtag! (Early is fine.)
(Please forgive us if we cannot get to all your questions.)
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) February 18, 2019
JAXA will broadcast live online from its control room with an English translation available.
The spacecraft’s cylindrical sampler horn is designed to touch the asteroid’s surface, fire a bullet into the rock and then gather up the fragments ejected by the impact.
The Hayabusa 2 team conducted an experiment on Earth to see if the sampler is likely to work with Ryugu’s gravelly surface. The test involved firing a projectile into a simulated surface made to mimic the asteroid. According to the results, the spacecraft’s system should work just fine.
The touchdown is still a daring operation. The spacecraft will have to avoid boulders, but still get close enough to reach the surface. If all goes well, Hayabusa 2 will return to Earth in late 2020 with a bit of asteroid on board for scientists to study.
