Japanese capsule carrying pieces of asteroid Ryugu will land on Earth Dec. 6

[Judi Lynn]

By Mike Wall a day ago

The landing site is in the Outback of South Australia.



The sample-return capsule from Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft returns to Earth carrying pieces of asteroid Ryugu in this artist's illustration. The landing is set for Dec. 6, 2020.
(Image: © JAXA)

The pristine asteroid material collected by a Japanese spacecraft last year will come down to Earth less than five months from now, if all goes according to plan.

Samples of the 3,000-foot-wide (900 meters) near-Earth asteroid Ryugu snagged by Japan's Hayabusa2 probe are scheduled to land in the South Australian Outback on Dec. 6 local time, officials of both nations' space agencies announced yesterday (July 14).

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) "has applied for the Authorization of Return of Overseas Launched Space Object (AROLSO), and both agencies are currently in the process of confirming this. The application will be approved under the Australian Space Activities Act, which came into force in 1998," JAXA and Australian Space Agency officials said in a joint statement yesterday.

Hayabusa2 launched in December 2014 and arrived at the rubbly Ryugu in June 2018. The spacecraft deployed multiple miniprobes onto the asteroid's surface, taking Ryugu's measure in a number of ways.

More:
https://www.space.com/japan-hayabusa2-asteroid-samples-landing-date.html

[still_one]

1. The Andromeda strain?

[lapfog_1]

2. you beat me to it.

just what we need... a second very novel virus...

however, the chances a alien virus would be to infect any life on earth is extremely remote... that is unless all life on the planet same the origin from off planet.

[still_one]

4. +++

[bronxiteforever]

3. K&R. Just an incredible feat of science.

[Midnight Writer]

5. Amazing they can do this.