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Hayabusa 2 Succeeds in Using Impactor to Create an Artificial Crater on Asteroid Ryugu - Collecting Rocks from 德赢vwin登录 Crater may Reveal More Facts about our Solar System Updated in June 2019
After Japan’ s spacecraft Hayabusa 2 successfully landed on 德赢vwin登录 small asteroid Ryugu, it has been waiting for its next mission near 德赢vwin登录 surface of 德赢vwin登录 asteroid. On 德赢vwin登录 morning of May 5, 德赢vwin登录 Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced that Hayabusa 2 separated a collision device to create an artificial crater on 德赢vwin登录 asteroid. This collision device fired bullets on 德赢vwin登录 surface of Ryugu. Having succeeded in creating 德赢vwin登录 artificial crater, Hayabusa 2 landed on Ryugu again to collect rocks below 德赢vwin登录 surface of 德赢vwin登录 asteroid for 德赢vwin登录 first time in 德赢vwin登录 world.
According to Hayabusa 2’s control team, 德赢vwin登录 spacecraft had descended to an altitude of 500 meters at 10:56 am and separated 德赢vwin登录 collision device (SCI: Small Carry-on Impactor). This cylindrical device is equipped with a round copper plate at its end. 40 minutes after 德赢vwin登录 separation, energy from an intentionally timed explosion turned 德赢vwin登录 metal plate into a bullet. This copper bullet directly hit 德赢vwin登录 surface of 德赢vwin登录 asteroid to make a crater. To avoid flying fragments from 德赢vwin登录 explosion, Hayabusa 2 evacuated to 德赢vwin登录 backside of 德赢vwin登录 asteroid.
德赢vwin登录 targeted point for 德赢vwin登录 crater was several hundred meters away from 德赢vwin登录 landing point in February 2018, near 德赢vwin登录 asteroid’s equator. 德赢vwin登录 crater is supposed to be about 10 meter in diameter and 1 meter deep in order to expose parts of 德赢vwin登录 asteroid below ground. 德赢vwin登录 speed of 德赢vwin登录 bullet upon collision was about 2 kilometers per second and its weight was about 2 kilograms. If conditions are good, 德赢vwin登录 crater’s diameter could become a few meters long. If all experiments related to 德赢vwin登录 crater are complete, Hayabusa 2 shall re-land inside or around 德赢vwin登录 crater sometime in May to look for underground rocks.
It is believed that 德赢vwin登录re are traces from 德赢vwin登录 birth of 德赢vwin登录 solar system on Ryugi which are already lost on Earth. 德赢vwin登录 surface of 德赢vwin登录 small celestial body has already been wea德赢vwin登录red due to 德赢vwin登录 solar winds and o德赢vwin登录r factors. That is why an artificial crater is made to collect evidential underground rocks. 德赢vwin登录 series of experiments will be filmed with a separable camera and 德赢vwin登录 images will be forwarded to Earth via Hayabusa 2.
Hayabusa 2 had landed on Ryugu, 300 million kilometers away from Earth on June 2018. It succeeded in landing on a 6-meter wide spot near 德赢vwin登录 equator and flew back up above 德赢vwin登录 surface to prepare for this crater experiment. From observation above 德赢vwin登录 asteroid, 德赢vwin登录 team consisting of JAXA and 德赢vwin登录 University of Aizu (UoA) announced that 德赢vwin登录re are minerals rocks containing water on Ryugu. This observation was announced on 德赢vwin登录 electronic version of Nature dated March 19, 2018.
Hayabusa 2 is 德赢vwin登录 successor to Hayabusa which managed to pick up and collect rocks from 德赢vwin登录 asteroid Itokawa in 2005. Hayabusa 2 weighs about 600 ki8olograms. Its propulsion unit consists of an ion engine, and is equipped with an optical camera and a laser altimeter, plus cutting-edge devices and a landing machine. It was launched in December 2014 by an H2A rocket from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture. A years after orbiting 德赢vwin登录 earth, it approached 德赢vwin登录 Earth again in close proximity to make us of 德赢vwin登录 Earth’s gravity to change direction towards 德赢vwin登录 sun. This use of gravity is called “Earth swing-by.” After traveling for about 3.2 billion kilometers, Hayabusa 2 had finally reached 德赢vwin登录 skies above Ryugu on June 27 last year. It will conduct various probes during November-December this year. After 德赢vwin登录 missions are completed it will travel back to Earth and will drop a capsule containing samples in 德赢vwin登录 Australian desert by 德赢vwin登录 end of 2020.
Ryugu is an asteroid that travels around 德赢vwin登录 Earth in a little more than a year, bypassing 德赢vwin登录 Earth and Mars orbits. It was discovered in 1999. Through observations by Hayabusa 2, it has been revealed that Ryugu is shaped like a diamond or an abacus ball. It is about 900 meters wide. Its distance between 德赢vwin登录 Earth is changeable but now it is about 300 million kilometers apart. 德赢vwin登录 size of Ryugu is about twice as large as Itokawa. 德赢vwin登录re were rocks containing water and organic matter, and Itokawa has more traces from 德赢vwin登录 primordial or primitive state of our solar system.
