Important Innovations

  Hayabusa 2 Mission Source:  JAXA Priceless Space Rocks Retrieved from Asteroid Ryugu Japan's second asteroid mission - Hyabusa 2 - has safely returned to Earth with a treasure trove of priceless space rocks collected from the asteroid Ryugu.  For the Japanese space agency JAXA, the Hyabusa 2 mission is a spectacular success.  And the priceless space rocks brought back to Earth open up a brand new avenue of scientific discovery about the origin and composition of asteroids and the search for signs of life in space. Asteroid Mission Started in 2014 The mission was launched in 2014,  Hyabusa 2 arrived at Ryugu in 2018 and landed on it in 2019.  It used several landers and blasted the asteroid's surface with a space gun to collect rocks, sediment and dirt.   World Awaits Space Rock Analysis Astronomers and space enthusiasts around the world are waiting for the analysis of the space rocks and sediment to be finalized.  Questions include what materials do they consist of, do they c

  Successful Japanese Mission in Space                                                  Source:  JAXA Japanese Spacecraft Retrieves Asteroid Dust The Japanese space agency JAXA has announced that its spacecraft Hayabusa2 has successfully retrieved asteroid dust from the asteroid Ryugu in space.  The scientific hope is that the asteroid dust will contain clues to the origin of the Earth and the solar system.  Japanese scientists also hope to learn "how water was brought to Earth".  The asteroid dust dates back 4.6 billion years. Arduous Mission The asteroid mission was a long and arduous one.  It underscores the innovative leadership role that Asian nations are taking in space.  Last week, a Chinese robotic spacecraft collected samples of the Moon's surface.  That is the first time since 1972 that lunar soil has been retrieved from space.  Now, the Japanese have captured asteroid dust in space.  The Japanese probe landed twice on the asteroid Ryugu, used explosives to crea

   Metal Asteroid Valued at $10,000,000,000,000,000,000                                                        Source:   NASA 16 Psyche Asteroid 16 Psyche Asteroid Discovered by NASA's Hubble NASA just struck gold!  NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered a rare, heavy and tremendously valuable asteroid called "16 Psyche".  The metal asteroid is located between Jupiter and Mars in the Solar system's main asteroid belt.  It's about the size of West Virginia and is 230 million miles from Earth.  Unlike most asteroids that are rocky or icy, 16 Psyche is almost entirely metal. The research team that made the discovery thinks it may be made of iron and nickel.  Given its size and metal content, 16 Psyche is valued by experts at $10,000,000,000,000,000,000.  That is 10,000 times more valuable than the value of the global economy. New Psyche Mission In 2022, NASA Discovery Mission Psyche will launch atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.  An orbiting probe will reac

European Space Agency Asteroid Find Source: NASA-ESA Asteroid Image Space Rock in Earth-Crossing Orbit The European Space Agency (ESA) has discovered a huge asteroid moving at warp speed.  32,000 miles per hour to be exact. The asteroid is a big one with a diameter of 262 feet.  That's about  the size of a commercial aircraft wing tip to wing tip.  ESA has named the space rock 2020 Ft3 and they've added it to their Risk List of asteroids that could hit Earth. 2089 - 2110 Timeframe 2020 Ft3 follows an Earth-crossing orbit, making it a member of the Apollo family of asteroids.  The space rock is world's away from Earth.  ESA believes the chances of it striking the Earth are very  small.  And, they and NASA have calculated, if by some slight chance it were to hit, it would  not happen before 2089.  They  add, the remote possibility of a strike would be

Bennu - Spinning Space Rock Source:  NASA NASA Probe NASA's OSIRIS- REx  mission arrived at the spinning, diamond shaped asteroid Bennu earlier this year.  It has just started relaying images of it. This spinning image was captured by an advanced laser built into OSIRIS.  It shows how dangerous the rocky surface is.  The space rock is so packed with debris at the surface level, NASA hasn't been able to determine where to land a probe on the asteroid. Diamond Shaped Rock in the Sky The laser paints a 3D picture of the rock surface that it's bouncing off and provides NASA a detailed glimpse of the rocky surface. Selecting where to briefly land the OSIRIS probe to collect samples is critical.  Landing in an area with too much debris and high rocky cliffs could destroy the mission. The laser images indicate there aren't many clear areas on the rock to land.  At any rate, OSIRIS will orbit Bennu for the rest of the year before attempting the landing which may be