Japanese officials say they are happy with the quality Asteroids Materials collected by the spacecraft and returned to Earth.
Last week, officials from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, described samples taken from the planet Raigu in July 2019. Ryug sits at a distance of more than 300 million kilometers from Earth.
Japan’s unmanned Hibusa 2 spacecraft removed material after a hole exploded in the planet.
The space agency said in July 2019 Mission The aim is to collect samples below the surface of Rayuguni. During an earlier operation in February 2019, Hayabusa 2 collected material from a separate part of the asteroid.
As a result of the second collection, the pieces of the sample grew as large as 1 centimeter, JAXA officials said. The black stuff looked similar Charcoal They added, and were very strict. It did not break when taken or poured into another container.
Earlier this month, space officials described samples of the Hybusa 2 on its first mission as small, sandy fragments. They were collected from the surface of Ryuguni.
Haibusa was launched on December 2, 2014 and came close to Ryugu in June 2018. The purpose of the Japanese space mission is to use samples to learn more about how our solar system was formed.
Tomohiro Usui of JXA is a space material scientist. He told the Associated Press that Hibusa 2 was used to obtain a second set of samples in July. Influential To explode below the surface of the planet. The purpose was to collect materials affected by space radiation or other environmental conditions.
Usui noted that the difference in size indicates different hardness Bedrock Of asteroids. “One possibility is that the second touchdown location was a hard bedrock and large particles broke and entered Compartment, ”Yusui said.
JX will continue its examination of asteroid samples before completing the study next year. After the study in Japan, some samples were sent to the U.S. for additional research. The space agency will be shared with NASA and other international space agencies.
Asteroids orbit the Sun but are much smaller than planets. They are among the most ancient things in the solar system, and scientists will be able to understand how the earth evolved over time. Asteroid specimens may provide researchers with a rare opportunity to study these mysterious rocky objects.
Haibusa 2 is now on a second mission to a small asteroid, called 1998KY26. JX expects the plane to take 11 years to reach that planet. The new mission of Hibusa 2 aims to study possible ways to stop adults Meteor From hitting the earth.
The only other nation to successfully store asteroid specimens is the United States. NASA announced last month that its Osiris-Rex spacecraft has already conducted sample operations on the planet Bennu. NASA said it is happy to collect more sample material than expected by the spacecraft.
I’m Brian Lynn.
The Associated Press and Reuters have reported on the story. Brian Lee adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor.
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the comments section, and Visit our Facebook page.
________________________________________________
The words in this story
Asteroids – n. One of the thousands of small planets that circle the sun
Mission – n. Flight by plane or spacecraft to perform a specific task
Charcoal – n. A hard black material made by burning wood in small amounts of air
Influential – n. an object object (such as a meteorite) that collides with another body
Bedrock – n. A solid rock beneath the surface of the earth
Compartment – n. An enclosed space or area that is usually part of a large object and is often used to hold a specific object
Meteor – n. A piece of rock or metal that falls to the ground from outer space: a meteorite that reaches the earth’s surface without being completely burned.
.
