Jason Davis • Sep 27, 2018
Japan's asteroid hoppers deliver new batch of incredible images
A fresh batch of incredible images from Japan's Hayabusa2 mission have arrived on Earth, revealing asteroid Ryugu's rocky surface in even finer detail.
Last Friday, the Hayabusa2 spacecraft dropped a pair of hopping, drum-shaped rovers onto the surface from a height of about 60 meters. The 18-centimeter-wide probes, collectively called MINERVA-II1, can lift themselves off the surface for several minutes at a time using spinning, internal motors. Both rovers captured images during their descent, and one rover grabbed a picture mid-hop.
Now there are new images. On Thursday, Japan's space agency, JAXA, confirmed both rovers are hopping as designed, and released a treasure trove of pictures from the probes as they tumble around Ryugu. The snapshots show the asteroid's surface as a loose pile of gravel strewn with larger rocks and boulders.
![Scenes from Rover-1B](https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_768x569_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_hopping-1b.jpg 768w, https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_576x427_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_hopping-1b.jpg 576w)
![Rover 1-A selfie](https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_574x855_crop_center-center_line/20180927_scenes-1a.jpg 574w)
JAXA also released a high-resolution image from the Hayabusa2 spacecraft itself, hovering above the shadowed edge of a boulder several meters wide.
![Ryugu from 64 meters](https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_768x768_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_fig1_onc20180921_0404_scale.jpg 768w, https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_576x576_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_fig1_onc20180921_0404_scale.jpg 576w)
![Ryugu from 64 meters (context images)](https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_1200x616_crop_center-center_82_line/20180927_ryugu-64-meter-context.jpg 1200w, https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_768x394_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_ryugu-64-meter-context.jpg 768w, https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/web/assets/pictures/_576x295_crop_center-center_60_line/20180927_ryugu-64-meter-context.jpg 576w)
Ryugu's surface will prove challenging for the mission's ultimate goal of collecting a sample for return to Earth in 2020. The latest JAXA press release lists that sample attempt happening in late October, with a rehearsal planned in the middle of the month. A similar touchdown rehearsal in mid-September was cancelled after the spacecraft had trouble detecting reflections from Ryugu's dark surface.
Rover-1B succeeded in shooting a movie on Ryugu’s surface! The movie has 15 frames captured on September 23, 2018 from 10:34 - 11:48 JST. Enjoy ‘standing’ on the surface of this asteroid! [6/6] pic.twitter.com/57avmjvdVa
— HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) September 27, 2018
Hayabusa2 is also scheduled to release a lander called MASCOT on Wednesday, October 3.
The Time is Now.
As a Planetary Defender, you’re part of our mission to decrease the risk of Earth being hit by an asteroid or comet.
Donate Today