Categories: Asteroids

Japanese Rocket Launches Asteroid Probe

A Japanese M-5 rocket lifted off on Friday carrying a spacecraft which will be the first to ever collect samples from the surface of an asteroid. Called Muses-C, the spacecraft will take only two years to reach asteroid 1998 SF 36 – one of the Earth?s closest space neighbours ? and then return to Earth by 2007. A grapefruit-sized marker imprinted with nearly 900,000 names will also be dropped onto the asteroid?s surface.

Fraser Cain

Fraser Cain is the publisher of Universe Today. He's also the co-host of Astronomy Cast with Dr. Pamela Gay. Here's a link to my Mastodon account.

Recent Posts

New Evidence for Our Solar System’s Ghost: Planet Nine

Does another undetected planet languish in our Solar System's distant reaches? Does it follow a…

2 hours ago

NASA Takes Six Advanced Tech Concepts to Phase II

It's that time again. NIAC (NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts) has announced six concepts that will…

5 hours ago

China is Going Back to the Moon Again With Chang'e-6

On Friday, May 3rd, the sixth mission in the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program (Chang'e-6) launched…

7 hours ago

What Can Early Earth Teach Us About the Search for Life?

Earth is the only life-supporting planet we know of, so it's tempting to use it…

8 hours ago

China Creates a High-Resolution Atlas of the Moon

Multiple space agencies are looking to send crewed missions to the Moon's southern polar region…

1 day ago

Dinkinesh's Moonlet is Only 2-3 Million Years Old

Last November, NASA's Lucy mission conducted a flyby of the asteroid Dinkinish, one of the…

2 days ago