Japanese probe captures unprecedented image of 'snowman'-shaped asteroid

Testing Defense Technologies

This mission follows a successful test conducted by NASA in 2022, where a spacecraft intentionally altered the orbit of the asteroid Dimorphos through impact. Although it was previously known that Torifune has an elongated shape, details of its structure remained unknown. Hayabusa2 traveled at a speed of over 18,000 km/h and was supposed to pass at a distance of about 800 meters from the asteroid. However, JAXA reported that it will further analyze the exact distance achieved during the flyby. If this value is confirmed, the mission could become one of the closest flybys of a near-Earth asteroid. The agency also reported that it managed to obtain data from three other scientific instruments capable of measuring the distance to the asteroid and investigating the presence of water.

Future Tasks of the Probe

JAXA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are jointly working on another planetary defense mission aimed at studying the asteroid Apophis, which will pass close to Earth in April 2029. Hayabusa2, launched in 2014, already attracted attention by landing on the asteroid Ryugu, located approximately 300 million kilometers from Earth, and collecting samples of its surface. Six years later, the probe returned to Earth with this material, allowing scientists to gain insights into the conditions of the Solar System during its early stages of formation, about 4.6 billion years ago. After the Torifune mission, in 2031, Hayabusa2 is scheduled to encounter asteroid 1998KY26. At this stage, the spacecraft will either fly past the celestial body or land on it to collect detailed scientific data.