Hayabusa2
Japanese asteroid sample-return mission that returned Ryugu samples to Earth.
Hayabusa2 is an asteroid sample-return mission operated by the Japanese state space agency JAXA.
- field
- Space exploration
- nationality
- Japanese
- known_for
- First mission to deploy operating rovers on an asteroid; returned samples from a carbonaceous near-Earth asteroid
- mission_type
- Asteroid sample-return
- operator
- JAXA
Lore & Background
Hayabusa2 was developed by JAXA following the initial success of Hayabusa.
Reader's Guide
Carbonaceous asteroids are thought to preserve pristine materials—minerals, ice, and organic compounds—that can provide knowledge on the origin and evolution of the inner planets and the origin of water and organic compounds on Earth, relevant to the origin of life. The mission achieved several firsts, including deploying operating rovers on an asteroid. Its spacecraft featured improved ion engines, guidance and navigation technology, and a kinetic penetrator to expose pristine subsurface material. The returned samples were retrieved and transported to JAXA labs in Japan for analysis. The mission demonstrates JAXA's capability in deep-space sample return and contributes to understanding the early Solar System.
Did You Know?
- Hayabusa2 was the first spacecraft to deploy operating rovers on an asteroid.
- It used a kinetic penetrator (a high-explosive shaped charge) to expose pristine sample material from beneath the asteroid surface.
- The spacecraft carried four small rovers: Rover-1A (HIBOU), Rover-1B (OWL), MASCOT, and Rover-2.
More in Space Missions 1-22
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