And went to the next
An important event for astronomy happened yesterday. The Hayabusa 2 spacecraft dropped a container with soil samples from the asteroid Ryugu to Earth.
Japanese spacecraft dropped a capsule with samples of the asteroid Ryugu on Earth
Hayabusa 2 was launched in 2014. In 2018, it approached an asteroid, and later the first-ever soft landing of a spacecraft on the surface of an asteroid was made. True, it was not the Hayabusa 2 itself, but the small robotic vehicles Rover-1A and Rover-1B. Hayabusa 2 itself landed on Ryugu in 2019, taking soil samples, and a few months later, the device fired a copper projectile at the asteroid to collect samples from deeper depths.
The probe left the asteroid in November last year, and on December 5, 2020, flying past Earth, dropped a capsule with samples. She landed in South Australia, where scientists were already waiting for her. The mission was successful, and Hayabusa 2 itself went to its next target – asteroid (98943) 2001 CC. True, he will come to him only in 2031.
