Mohawk valley astronomical society
SPECIAL DELIVERY by carol higgins
As the gift-giving season gets in full swing this month, we have lots of unique shopping options here in the Mohawk Valley. But what if you placed an order and had to wait six years for it to be delivered, and you weren’t sure what would be inside the package? That’s exactly the situation for a patient team of scientists in Japan. They are waiting for a special delivery scheduled to arrive on December 6, coming from far out in the solar system and delivered by a spacecraft. Meet Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft and its precious cargo – surface material from an asteroid! Hayabusa2 is a Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) mission. It launched December 2, 2014, on a journey to an asteroid named 162173 Ryugu, one of over a million members of a region between Mars and Jupiter called the asteroid belt. Carrying a suite of remote sensing scientific instruments and cameras, the mission goals are ambitious. In addition to surveying and imaging the asteroid, analyzing its composition, spin rate, and gravity, the primary goal is to collect samples of the surface and return them to Earth! When the spacecraft arrived at Ryugu in June 2018, it found an odd-shaped world that is described as a “spinning top.” At just over a half-mile across, the surface is a combination of small particles, pebbles, rocks, and boulders. Asteroids are small objects that orbit the Sun, leftover material from the time when our solar system was forming. There are three classes of asteroids. The C-type is
carbon-rich and contains clay, minerals, and silicates. They account Hayabusa2 and asteroid Ryugu for about 75 percent of known asImage credit: JAXA/Akihiro Ikeshita teroids. S-type asteroids are “stony” and contain silicates, while M-types end well for dinosaurs around 65 million are metallic and comprised mainly of years ago! But asteroids also tell a story nickel-iron. Ryugu is a C-type asteroid. about the composition, formation, and evo After months of evaluating the surface, lution of our early solar system. Scientists Huyabusa2 took its first samples in FebruImage NASA,Ryugu ESA, W. Keel, Galaxywill Zoo Team believe theCredit: pristine samples proary 2019 and the second in July 2019.Hanny’s The Voorwerp. vide that geologic look back in time. capture operations were no small feat and But Hayabusa2 isn’t the only spacecraft required some tricky maneuvers to carefully that will return asteroid samples. NASA’s steer the spacecraft. When its sample-arm OSIRIS-REx spacecraft arrived at asteroid touched the surface, a projectile fired to Bennu in December 2018. In late October expose material below the surface, causing 2020, it touched the surface and collected debris to float into a collection tube then into sample materials, then placed them in a rea “catcher” which was eventually stowed in turn capsule. The spacecraft will soon bea return capsule. Hayabusa2 started its trip gin its journey back to Earth to drop off the back to Earth in November 2019. capsule for a September 24, 2023 landing in Since then, JAXA’s mission controllers Utah. monitoring the spacecraft have occasionally Studying sample materials from othadjusted course to ensure it will be on the er celestial objects is a planetary scientist’s correct trajectory when it reaches Earth and dream come true. What will we learn from releases the return capsule on December 6. these two exciting special deliveries? The capsule is about 16-inches across, with Wishing you clear skies and good health! • a protective heat shield and a parachute to slow its descent during landing. An anxious JAXA team will be waiting in the Woomera Join MVAS from 7pm to 10pm on Prohibited Area in South Australia to recover the capsule and take its priceless payload December 12 for stargazing at to Japan for analysis. Barton-Brown Observatory Many asteroids have an orbit that takes 206 White St., Waterville them close to our planet, and tracking them is important for developing planetary deSee the MVAS Facebook page for details. fense strategies. As we know, things didn’t
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Town of Webb Historical Association
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