Scientists Confirm Returned Asteroid Probe Contains Soil Sample

Space Technology is discovering loads and loads of undiscovered facets of our universe. Humanity has used space science and satellite technology to understand many events like a black hole, the big bang, etc. Now, humans have achieved one more feat in their quest to understand the space related to asteroids. The Hayabusa2 mission has successfully delivered the asteroid samples from the Ryugu asteroid. JAXA (Japanese Space Agency) has confirmed black soil samples present inside a capsule that Hayabusa2 brought back from a distant asteroid.

About Hayabusa2 Mission

Hayabusa2 is a Japanese space expedition launched to study the Ryugu asteroid and collect soil samples and any other if present. Hayabusa2 had to bring back these samples to Earth for further analysis. The collected samples came to Earth this December 2020 when Hayabusa2 dropped the capsule containing the sample using a parachute. It took almost three and a half years for Hayabusa2 to reach the asteroid. There are many scientific payloads that Hayabusa2 is carrying for remote sensing and sampling:

  1. Thermal infrared imager
  2. Laser altimeter
  3. Multispectral cameras
  4. Magnetometer
  5. Radiometer
  6. Separation camera
  7. MicrOmega infrared microscope

These payloads and the scientific instruments helped Hayabusa2 investigate the Ryugu asteroid to assess and analyze its geological and mineralogical factors.

Ryugu Asteroid

The diamond-shaped asteroid Ryugu is a C-type category asteroid with a very low albedo (low reflective power). It is because of its major component being carbon that has a high heat absorption capacity. Some of the other constituents of this asteroid are:

  • Hydrogen
  • Helium
  • Volatile Compounds

One cannot detect Ryugu asteroids or any C-type asteroids so easily as D and S-type asteroids because of the low reflective power. However, most asteroids in the vicinity of Sun and Earth, i.e., almost 3.5 astronomical units, are C-type asteroids. The spectral absorption data obtained from the Hayabusa2 has shown that there can be water present on the surface of Ryugu. Though it has a diameter of merely 1 km or 0.6 miles, scientists consider Ryugu a potentially hazardous asteroid (PHA) because of its distance from the Earth. According to scientists, Ryugu contains organic and hydrated minerals preserved for the last 4.6 billion years.

Steps Taken After Landing

Hayabusa2 dropped the 40 centimeters in diameter pan-shaped capsule on a predetermined spot in Woomera, South Australia. One of the scientists from JAXA, Hirotaka Sawada, got the first opportunity to look inside the capsule that has brought the samples. Mr. Hirotaka Sawada also confirmed that the tightly sealed capsule brought back some of the asteroid gases that are not part of Earth’s air component. It took 57 hours to transfer the capsule from the landing site to the JAXA. Hence, it reduced the chances of any contamination that may occur if the materials or samples collected inside may interact with the Earth’s environment.

What will JAXA do with the samples?

JAXA has already said that they will send 10% of the collected sample to NASA in December 2021 to exchange samples from asteroid Bennu. They will also provide another 15% to the international space scientists and researchers’ community and store and preserve 40% of the materials for future investigation. The scientists from JAXA have shown their interest in analyzing the organic materials in the samples. Hence, it will help them learn about the distribution of the organic materials in the solar system. Also, it may help to generate the relationship between organic materials and life on Earth.

Conclusion

What JAXA achieved will serve humanity for decades and centuries. It will bring us closer to the understanding of the evolution of the universe. Scientists believe that the samples collected may help to understand how Earth became covered with water. Humanity is waiting for Hayabusa2 that has left for future space expeditions to bring more samples from other asteroids. These collected materials from other planetary objects and heavenly bodies would provide more concrete facts about the universe and solar system.

Source url:- https://6morton.com/scientists-confirm-returned-asteroid-probe-contains-soil-sample/

Ava Williams is a Norton product expert and has been working in the technology industry since 2002. As a technical expert, Ava has written technical blogs, manuals, white papers, and reviews for many websites such as norton.com/setup.

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