Hayabusa return delayed
Posted: Wed, Dec 14, 2005, 8:23 AM ET (1323 GMT)
Japan's Hayabusa space probe will delay its return to Earth by three years because of ongoing thruster problems with the spacecraft. Hayabusa, still in the vicinity of the asteroid Itokawa, needs to fire its main engine by mid-December in order to enter a trajectory that will bring the spacecraft back to Earth in mid-2007. However, continued thruster problems have hampered normal operations, and JAXA officials said Wednesday that they are rescheduling the spacecraft's return. That change will keep the spacecraft from returning to Earth until mid-2010, assuming that spacecraft operations return to normal. Hayabusa is designed to return to Earth carrying samples of the asteroid's surface, but project officials said last week there is no guarantee the spacecraft collected any, because a pellet used to kick up samples from the surface apparently did not fire.
Japan's Hayabusa space probe will delay its return to Earth by three years because of ongoing thruster problems with the spacecraft. Hayabusa, still in the vicinity of the asteroid Itokawa, needs to fire its main engine by mid-December in order to enter a trajectory that will bring the spacecraft back to Earth in mid-2007. However, continued thruster problems have hampered normal operations, and JAXA officials said Wednesday that they are rescheduling the spacecraft's return. That change will keep the spacecraft from returning to Earth until mid-2010, assuming that spacecraft operations return to normal. Hayabusa is designed to return to Earth carrying samples of the asteroid's surface, but project officials said last week there is no guarantee the spacecraft collected any, because a pellet used to kick up samples from the surface apparently did not fire.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Tuesday, September 1
OHB Secures €1 Billion Deal For 18 IRIS² MEO Satellites
Aviation Week — 5:55 am ET (0955 GMT) OHB to Build 18 MEO Satellites for IRIS² in Nearly €1B Award
ViaSatellite — 5:55 am ET (0955 GMT) NDIA SWF: USSPACECOM leaders emphasize allied and commercial integration as critical to countering space threats
US Space Command — 5:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Northwood Space Expands California-Based Manufacturing Footprint
Aviation Week — 5:52 am ET (0952 GMT) U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, Space Force general visit L3Harris to see Golden Dome work
Greater Fort Wayne (IN) Business Weekly — 5:52 am ET (0952 GMT) |
