Japan Ready to Send Aircraft Space Again to Asteroid

Achievement spacecraft explorers first asteroid named Hayabusa - falcon bird in Japanese - to exceed the expectations of the designer. Future generations are now being prepared.

 

 

When part of the Hayabusa landed in the Australian outback in a state of charred and dented in June 2010, the Japanese people feel proud of the achievements of space exploration and scientific efforts that have never waged any country - let alone achieved . Hayabusa landed on a 500-meter asteroid called Itokawa that cross Earth's solar system - passes through a series of mechanical problems on the way , including a broken gyroscope and fuel leakage - and managed to collect microscopic particles of cosmic dust that is on the surface of the asteroid . Hayabusa back to the earth then sends the charge really valuable for researchers at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency ( JAXA ) .
Lessons learned from the trip so far 1 billion kilometers - for 7 years , 1 month and 4 days - significantly expand human knowledge about the solar system and the origin of the Earth , said Dr . Makoto Yoshikawa , who became head of the project in 2006 , and is now the manager of the Hayabusa - 2 mission .
Now turn to the second spacecraft , named together to give an answer to the growing list of questions from the researcher .

The structure of steroids

 

" The most important thing we learned from the Hayabusa mission was the first asteroid structure , " says Yoshikawa told DW . " Asteroid rocks composed of fragments - a ' rubble pile ' - and that we did not know before. "
Yoshikawa said scientists do not know in advance that there are craters on the asteroid's surface , or there are so many large stones , and all of these shocking for them .
Upon returning to Earth , JAXA researchers say that the recovery room Hayabusa particles carry about 1,500 minutes - each less than 100 micrometers in diameter . These particles have been divided by experts in various parts of the world and being studied to find out more about the formation of the universe .
A number of tests have revealed kondrit LL type with a high iron content , which can not be found on the surface of the earth . Further tests to calculate the level and the existence of isotopes , the crystal structure of the rock fragments , abundant atom , the presence of noble gases and organic , as well as identify other trace elements .
This successful project has been named as one of the scientific breakthrough of 2013 by Science magazine . Hayabusa also two times on the cover of the magazine .

Sky-high expectations

 

This means high expectations for the Hayabusa - 2 .
The target this time is classified as a C-type asteroid , meaning the rock contains more water and organic material . Only known as 1999- JU3 , these asteroids have orbits similar to Itokawa and sometimes closer to the Earth . More rounded than the previous target , asteroid about 920 meters long .
Like the first Hayabusa , the spacecraft made ​​more sophisticated , planned to be launched end of 2014 , will utilize ion engine to reach the 1999- JU3 in June 2018. According to the project schedule , the Hayabusa - 2 will last for 18 months in asteroids , perform a series of tests , before returning to earth end of 2020 .
The biggest innovation of this project is how spacecraft collect cosmic dust particles on the asteroid .
" When the plane arrived , will issue a small box containing an explosive device before maneuvering into the other parts of the asteroid , to stay away from the explosion , " said Yoshikawa . " The explosion sent the ball weighing 2 kg of copper to the surface of the asteroid to form a crater , perhaps as deep as 50 cm and a width of 3 meters . "
Hayabusa - 2 will then landed in the crater to collect material that was located at the surface .
" The material on the surface had rotted from the sun and radiation , so we want to collect the particles that have not been exposed to the weathering process , " he explained .

First in space exploration

 

"It has not been tried before, and our goal is to collect granules with 0.1 gram weight range," said Yoshikawa. "Ideally we would like to collect a few grams of cosmic dust, but now it does not require much technical analysis because we have very sophisticated."

The most critical part of the whole operation is subtly asteroid landing - the slightest miscalculation will fatally cripple the aircraft, Yoshikawa emphasized - but he believes this expedition will bring success back to JAXA.

"The solar system was born 4.6 billion years ago, and before that there are molecular clouds," he said. "We believe that the cloud contains material that encourages life on earth and that which we seek."