Hayabusa 2

Hayabusa 2 launched into space on December 3rd, 2014 and is now unknown km from Earth. Its primary destination is Ryugu, which it arrived at on June 27th, 2018 . Wherever Hayabusa 2 goes, it carries its trusty ion engine, sampler horn, beanbag target markers, re-entry capsule, explosive impactor, infrared spectrometer and imager, small rovers, and small lander. Hayabusa 2 often chats with humans from JAXA.

Hayabusa 2 is a space probe on a mission to collect a piece of an asteroid and return it back to Earth. Hayabusa 2 hopes to learn more about the origin and evolution of the solar system by landing various devices on the primordial asteroid called Ryugu. Among other activities, the space probe intends to hurl an explosive impactor at the asteroid in order to create an artificial crater for studying its inside structure. Three hopping rovers and a small lander will also be sent to the surface of the asteroid to study it. Additionally, Hayabusa 2 comes equipped with a “sampling horn” so that it can capture gas and materials from the asteroid by pecking at it without landing.

Worth Exploring:

Hayabusa 2 fan art
an orbital view of Hayabusa 2's current position in space

(top image: the asteroid Ryugu as seen by Hayabusa 2 when it was 20 km away, JAXA, University of Tokyo, Kochi University, Rikkyo University, Nagoya University, Chiba Institute of Technology, Meiji University, University of Aizu and AIST.