- The Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 made a second touchdown on an asteroid Ryugu on July 10, 2019.
- It collected samples from beneath the surface in an unprecedented mission that could shed light on the origins of the solar system. According to the Japanese Space Agence JAXA, ‘We have never gathered subsurface material from a celestial body further away than the moon. We did it and we succeeded in a world first.’
- Hayabusa2 touched down on its targeted area measuring 7 meters in width, located 20 meters from the artificial crater’s center. The probe extended a tube to the surface and fired a small metallic projectile from it, successfully capturing the subsurface debris as it floated up.
- Hayabusa2’s first touchdown was in February, when it landed briefly on Ryugu and fired a bullet into the surface to puff up dust for collection, before blasting back to its holding position.
About Hayabusa2 mission
- The Hayabusa2 mission was launched in December 2014, and has a price tag of around ¥30 billion. The probe is scheduled to return to Earth with its samples in 2020.
- It is the successor to JAXA’s first asteroid explorer, Hayabusa
