Hayabusa Mission Topic

[3488]

Thanks for that excellent video EarthlingX. It is short, but is extremely good, really getting the low down on 25143 Itokawa, stunning views & the size comparison with the ISS is a nice touch & puts 25143 Itokawa into context. I have taken some screen dumps.

Gravity there is something like 1/100,000th Earth gravity.

Hi nimbus,

I think that is about right. It's pretty miniscule but certainly there is gravity there.

Hi BriK, welcome to SDC & thank you very much for the image. I have downloaded it into my vast, growing collection. :mrgreen:

Hi wildwell, welcome to SDC to you too.

I really, really hope there are samples from 25143 Itokawa in there, I really, really hope so. :shock:

Andrew Brown.

 

[orionrider]

Next picture! What's inside!?

http://www.newscientist.com/data/images ... -2_350.jpg

 

[3488]

Hi orionrider,

LOL, ROFLMAO :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Could you just imagine it, the look on the scientists faces if they did open up the capsule & see that inside :?: :lol: :?: :lol: :?: :mrgreen: :shock:

Andrew Brown.

 

[orionrider]

Beats the strep on Surveyor 3

Edit: Finding mice in space should not be surprising. More information on this discovery (from Wikipedia): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ra ... alaxy#Mice

 

[Asteroid_Hunter]

Is the Hayabusa the first probe mission to bring back samples from a celestial object? (aside from the moon)

I am not as nearly as informed as everyone else here, so I could not think of a mission that has ever brought material back from space. (aside from Apollo missions)

thanks,

 

[MeteorWayne]

Well, stardust brought home material from a comet (Wild 2) and interplanetary dust, and a Russian Luna missions brought back moon rocks as well as the Apollo missions.

Lunar
Mission Sample
Returned Year
Apollo 11 ..22 kg ..1969
Apollo 12 ..34 kg ..1969
Apollo 14 ..43 kg ..1971
Apollo 15 ..77 kg ..1971
Apollo 16 ..95 kg ..1972
Apollo 17 .111 kg ..1972
Luna 16 ....101 g ..1970
Luna 20.... 55 g ..1972
Luna 24 ....170 g ..1976

 

[orionrider]

Genesis did bring back samples of solar wind particles, but they hardly qualify as 'rocks' or even 'dust'.

 

[nimbus]

That's ueless hair splitting -- The mission objectives were considered fulfilled, so it stands to reason that those minute returned samples were enough for analysis. Regardless the qualitative semantics of the sample's size.

 

[alpha_centauri]

That's ueless hair splitting -- The mission objectives were considered fulfilled, so it stands to reason that those minute returned samples were enough for analysis. Regardless the qualitative semantics of the sample's size.

I may be wrong but I believe his comment is a specific reference to the person asking about "bringing back samples from a celestial object", i.e that Genesis was also a sample-return mission but not from a specific object and not bringing back a bunch of rocks as one might expect from such a mission. I was going to make the same comment before I saw his post. I don't think he was commenting on the scientific value.

 

[mithridates]

Let's get exact numbers on the gravity. 3.58 * 10^10 kg gives us:

at the outer edge (535 m):

The gravity is 3.34954901878e-05 metres per second, or 0.00334954901878 cm per second.
This is equal to 0.000341616422109 percent that of our Earth.
0.133740763271 metres per second or 0.481466747775 km/h is the escape velocity.

and near the centre with a width of 209 m:

The gravity is 0.000216585941043 metres per second, or 0.0216585941043 cm per second.
This is equal to 0.00220893361594 percent that of our Earth.
0.213267549381 metres per second or 0.767763177772 km/h is the escape velocity.

 

[orionrider]

0.0003 G? For an astronaut it would be just like floating in microgravity, as if there was nothing there at all.
And if the whole thing was a loose rubble collection, the smallest impact would explode it all over the space, like a bag of BB falling on the floor :?

 

[CalliArcale]

That's ueless hair splitting -- The mission objectives were considered fulfilled, so it stands to reason that those minute returned samples were enough for analysis. Regardless the qualitative semantics of the sample's size.

I may be wrong but I believe his comment is a specific reference to the person asking about "bringing back samples from a celestial object", i.e that Genesis was also a sample-return mission but not from a specific object and not bringing back a bunch of rocks as one might expect from such a mission. I was going to make the same comment before I saw his post. I don't think he was commenting on the scientific value.

I think that if they find dust, it would qualify as the first samples returned from the surface of a celestial object other than the Moon, which is certainly remarkable.

 

[EarthlingX]

It is remarkable and awesome and then some more. It's probably also a couple of firsts, which people usually like to hear about. I'm not so impressed with various statistics, much more with the Hayabusa story, and that is not over yet.

http://www.universetoday.com : Subaru Telescope Takes Montage of Hayabusa's Return to Earth

June 15th, 2010

Written by Nancy Atkinson


The composite image from 11 images, each with 5 sec exposure, spaced by 35-50 sec. The magnitude of Hayabusa is estimated to be 21 mag. Credit: Subaru Telescope Team

The world watched and waited for the Hayabusa spacecraft to make its return to Earth on June 13, 2010 and the people of Japan — who built and launched the little spacecraft that could (and did!) — were especially hopeful in watching and waiting. Japan's Subaru Telescope (although located on Mauna Kea in Hawaii) turned its expectant eyes towards Hayabusa and captured the spacecraft's flight between the Moon and Earth in 11 different images.

A note from the Subaru Telescope team:

During the busy time preparing the observations, Doctor Masafumi Yagi and his team managed to maneuver the telescope just in time to catch Hayabusa before it disappeared down south in the twilight sky. At that time, Hayabusa was a little less than half way between Moon and Earth. Five seconds exposures, each spaced by 35 – 50 seconds in the V filter with Suprime Cam, it showed up in clear trace at the position expected to be. Brightness is estimated to be only 21 magnitudes. At this level, one can see a background galaxy clearly.

We are waiting to hear more from the project team at ISAS/JAXA. In the meantime, congratulations to all who are involved in this unprecedented endeavor.

A GIF animation of the 11 images is available here — but be warned, the file is huge.

The recovery team handles the heat sheild for the Hayabusa sample return capsule. Credit: JAXA, Hayabusa Twitter feed.

You can see more images of the canister retrieval at the Hayabusa Twitpic page and the Australian Science Media Centre's Flickr page

There are also at least 5 videos.

 

[MeteorWayne]

It is remarkable and awesome and then some more. It's probably also a couple of firsts, which people usually like to hear about. I'm not so impressed with various statistics, much more with the Hayabusa story, and that is not over yet.

http://www.universetoday.com : Subaru Telescope Takes Montage of Hayabusa's Return to Earth

June 15th, 2010

Written by Nancy Atkinson


The composite image from 11 images, each with 5 sec exposure, spaced by 35-50 sec. The magnitude of Hayabusa is estimated to be 21 mag. Credit: Subaru Telescope Team

.

Brief comment on the image. The item labeled Meteorite? Hmm, first of all if it was one, it would be a meteor, not a meteorite (It's not a meteorite till it's on the surface of planet). Second, with no brightness variation, the brightness of the image, etc, it is far more likely to be a satellite rather than a meteor. I know I'm a pain....

 

[EarthlingX]

Brief comment on the image. The item labeled Meteorite? Hmm, first of all if it was one, it would be a meteor, not a meteorite (It's not a meteorite till it's on the surface of planet). Second, with no brightness variation, the brightness of the image, etc, it is far more likely to be a satellite rather than a meteor. I know I'm a pain....

To be honest, i almost didn't repost this, but then i saw that meteor .. :twisted:

Thanks

 

[orionrider]

Still no word from JAXA. Bet the cylinder was empty. But in my eyes the mission is still is a great success.
As I said in another post, even if there is nothing in there, it is still the first vacuum sample to come back from an asteroid :mrgreen:

 

[EarthlingX]

Still no word from JAXA. Bet the cylinder was empty. But in my eyes the mission is still is a great success.
As I said in another post, even if there is nothing in there, it is still the first vacuum sample to come back from an asteroid :mrgreen:

Perhaps even some dark matter

 

[Woggles]

This article made me laugh! http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20007925-1.html

here are highlights!

Scientists find asteroid probe, need can opener

The Andromeda Strain inspired them to wear helmets and body armor.


Carl Sagan would say, billions and billions of miles. Let's hope we at least get a good sci-fi film out of this.

 

[EarthlingX]

www.jaxa.jp : HAYABUSA Capsule Arrived at JAXA Sagamihara Campus

June 18, 2010 (JST)

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has completed the transportation of the Hayabusa capsule and its heat shields from Australia to the curation center* in JAXA Sagamihara Campus at 2:15 a.m. on June 18th, 2010 (JST) .


* curation center: facility for sample retrieving, observation and distribution

 

[Shpaget]

When are they planning to open the cannister and see if there is some star dust in it?

This is one of my favorite space missions ever. I really hope they find something nice in there.

 

[orionrider]

They will certainly find something mice.

 

[RVHM]

They will certainly find something mice.

Finding that on an asteroid certainly beats little green men or reptilians

 

[brandbll]

They will certainly find something mice.

Finding that on an asteroid certainly beats little green men or reptilians

Well we still haven't heard anything. They better crack that baby open or any mice they might have caught might be die from aphyxiating.

 

[EarthlingX]

http://twitter.com/elakdawalla :

According to a Japanese newspaper, X-ray of Hayabusa capsule reveals no particles bigger than 1 mm
Same article confirms that the pellet that was to launch sample into sample horn did NOT fire: http://bit.ly/bc4M4C

Original article : http://www.asahi.com/special/space/TKY201006180486.html

Google translated :
"Hayabusa" in the capsule of sand, no more than 1 mm

June 18, 2010 20:00

Asteroid "Itokawa" from the spacecraft "Hayabusa" the capsule returned to Earth, and one big sand than 18 mm can not enter, was confirmed. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency is investigating the situation found within the X-ray. Possibility that the dust contains less than 1 mm have been left yet.

Space capsule carrying mechanism in Chofu, Tokyo facilities, X-rays are taken inside.The lid of the container to collect the sand of the asteroid, and confirmed that the firm closed. The grit and passed on to photograph such a resolution of 1 mm, he said.

When the spacecraft landed on Itokawa, a small bullet fired had planned to collect the scattered debris.The bullet fired, but failed, may have entered the capsule at the landing impact, dust flew, the expectations are over.

 

[EarthlingX]

spacecoalition.com : Hayabusa Asteroid Sample Capsule: The Grand Opening

June 24, 2010

By Leonard David


Hayabusa sample container – ready for opening! Credit: JAXA


Hayabusa specialists ready return sample container for opening.

Hopes are high that the opening of a returned-to-Earth sample capsule does contain bits of an asteroid.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Hayabusa capsule returned to Earth on June 13th, parachuting down in Woomera, Australia. Once the container was recovered after some seven years of space travel it was brought to a curation facility at the Sagamihara Campus in Japan for inspection and disassembly.

The curation center is a facility for sample retrieving, observation and distribution.

This week, the first steps in opening the sample container have begun. JAXA officials note that it will take one week to complete the careful, step-by-step opening of the container.

According to Coalition sources close to the inspection of the capsule, the Hayabusa project team has detected some gas in the sample canister. That could be the result of hydrazine or leaked propellant when the Hayabusa spacecraft made contact with asteroid Itokowa. That flow of gas may well have carried with it tiny samples of the space rock.

Word from Japan is that the canister was found to be perfectly sealed. There is increased possibility, according to one observer, that the canister does carry dust particles of the asteroid.

Note: Special thanks to Toshiki Hasegawa and the JAXA/Hayabusa team.