A Japanese space probe arrived on Wednesday at an asteroid some 300 million kilometers from Earth as part of a mission in search of the origins of life.
Named for the peregrine falcon, the Hayabusa 2 blasted off in December 2014 for the asteroid Ryugu, named after an undersea palace in a Japanese folktale, to take samples that scientists hope will help reveal how life began.
“Everything has gone as planned,” a spokesman for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) told a news conference. “The probe has arrived at the asteroid”.
Television footage showed the control room erupting in applause as the probe’s safe arrival was confirmed, with some researchers standing and grinning as they shook hands.
“We’re mostly relieved, but now there’s tension as to whether the main mission will go well,” one official said.
Over the next year and a half, the spacecraft will attempt three brief touch-and-go landings to collect samples. If the retrieval and the return journey are successful, the asteroid material could provide clues to the origin of the solar system and life on Earth.
The mission is challenging.
The robotic explorer will spend about two months looking for suitable landing places on the uneven surface. Because of the high surface temperature, it will stay for only a few seconds each time it lands.
The asteroid is about 900 meters (3,000 feet) in diameter.
In photos released by JAXA, it appears more cube-shaped than round. A number of large craters can be seen, which Project Manager Yuichi Tsuda said in an online post makes the selection of landing points "both interesting and difficult."
The first touchdown is planned for September or October.
Before the final touchdown scheduled for April-May, Hayabusa 2 will send out a squat cylinder that will detonate above the asteroid, shooting a 2-kilogram (4.4-pound) copper projectile into it at high speed to make a crater.
Hayabusa 2 will hide on the other side of the asteroid to protect itself during the operation and wait another two to three weeks to make sure any debris that could damage the explorer has cleared.
It will then attempt to land at or near the crater to collect underground material that was blown out of the crater, in addition to the surface material from the earlier touchdowns.
Asteroids are believed to have formed at the dawn of the solar system and scientists say Ryugu may contain organic matter that may have contributed to life on Earth.
