Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 shoots projectile onto asteroid

          Source: Xinhua| 2019-04-05 23:42:29|Editor: Mu Xuequan
          Video PlayerClose

          TOKYO, April 5 (Xinhua) -- The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said on Friday that it has successfully shot an explosive projectile from its Hayabusa2 spacecraft which landed on and blasted the surface of asteroid Ryugu.

          JAXA said it was the world's first such experiment, after confirming in images sent from Hayabusa2 that blasted debris had risen from the asteroid's surface.

          Hayabusa2 dropped a "small carry-on impactor" which was essentially a metal cannon ball, onto the asteroid on Friday morning, the organization said.

          "The metal bullet hit the surface of the Ryugu asteroid and there was an outburst of materials," said Yuichi Tsuda, associate professor at JAXA.

          After dropping the impactor, the spacecraft moved quickly to the other side of the asteroid to avoid flying shards from the blast.

          The crater mission was the riskiest for Hayabusa2, as it had to immediately get away so it would not get hit by flying shards.

          The aim of the crater on Ryugu was to throw up "fresh" material from under the asteroid's surface that could shed light on the early stages of the solar system.

          The asteroid was thought to contain relatively large amounts of organic matter and water from some 4.6 billion years ago, when the solar system formed.

          In February, Hayabusa2 landed on Ryugu and collected samples from the asteroid's surface.

          The Hayabusa2 mission was launched in December 2014 and the space probe is scheduled to return to Earth in 2020.

          TOP STORIES
          EDITOR’S CHOICE
          MOST VIEWED
          EXPLORE XINHUANET
          010020070750000000000000011105091379530981
          无码人妻一区二区三区四区av_亚洲精品911在线永久观看_精品一区二区国产在线观看_日韩不卡一区二区视频在线

                  综合久久九色91色综合网 | 网友自拍区在线视频精品 | 亚洲欧美一区二区国产综合 | 亚洲午夜在线观看首页 | 亚洲无线码成人高清在线观看 | 中文字幕久热精品免费视频 |