Stardust Spacecraft to Return Comet Samples to Earth

[skyeagle409]

The Stardust spacecraft was launched on February 7, 1999, from Cape Canaveral Air Station, Florida, aboard a Delta II rocket. The primary goal of Stardust is to collect dust and carbon-based samples during its closest encounter with Comet Wild 2 - pronounced "Vilt 2" after the name of its Swiss discoverer - is a rendezvous scheduled to take place in January 2004, after nearly four years of space travel. <br /><br />Additionally, the Stardust spacecraft will bring back samples of interstellar dust, including recently discovered dust streaming into our Solar System from the direction of Sagittarius.<br /><br />http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/index.html

 

[skyeagle409]

<br />More on the Stardust spacecraft and it's coming back to Earth. <br /><br />So much for the individual who claimed that NASA didn't have such technology to conduct such missions. Goes to show he doesn't know what he is talking about.<br /><br /><br />http://www.solarviews.com/eng/stardust.htm <br /><br />http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/space_missions/comets/stardust.html <br /><br />http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/comets/wild_2/wild_2_nucleus.html <br />

 

[skyeagle409]

The Stardust mission proves beyond any doubt that mankind has the technology to send spacecraft into space to rendezvous with comets. Case-closed!