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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
Hayabusa's final approach on target; Japan's ready to receive samples
Hayabusa's final maneuver, a three-hour
Progress -- with pictures! -- on IKAROS' sail deployment
Several pictures from the sail deployment monitoring cameras showed up on the IKAROS blog overnight.
U.S. Citizens: Please write your elected representatives about restarting plutonium-238 production!
I'm hereby posting a request that was sent earlier today to members of the Division of Planetary Sciences (DPS) of the American Astronomical Society by its chair, Candy Hansen.
A brief history of Hayabusa
For those of you who found my Hayabusa mission recap too long, here's a graphical version of the history of the Hayabusa mission.
Hayabusa: "I did my best!"
While he was in Japan to observe IKAROS' sail deployment, Lou Friedman couldn't help but notice the country's excitement over the impending return of Hayabusa.
Apply for a Shoemaker NEO Grant! Deadline extended to June 24
Amateur astronomers, get your proposals in for this year's round of Shoemaker NEO Grants!
IKAROS team proceeds with final stage of sail deployment!
Just a brief update on IKAROS: According to their blog, JAXA has decided to proceed with the final stage of IKAROS' sail deployment.
Full Triple-J Laser Interview
Hey, remember when I was randomly interviewed by the Australian radio station triple j a few weeks ago as part of their feature on the 50th anniversary of the laser?
IKAROS update: Rotation rate inexplicably increasing
JAXA's end-of-Sunday update on IKAROS' status gives more details about an issue they are working on the spacecraft. The spacecraft itself is in perfect health, but its dynamics are different from what was expected.
Six days left for Hayabusa: A recap of the mission
The Hayabusa spacecraft is about to die. On Sunday, June 13, at 14:00 UTC, Hayabusa will burn up in Earth's atmosphere, bringing its dramatic seven-year mission to an end.
Bill Nye Signs on as Planetary Society's New Executive Director
Bill Nye the Science Guy® will take the helm as the new Executive Director of the Planetary Society.
IKAROS sail deployment delayed until at least Tuesday
This is just a brief update to yesterday's post to add a few sentences that Lou wanted to hold until JAXA had had a chance to issue an official statement.
Taking things slowly with IKAROS sail deployment
Planetary Society Executive Director Lou Friedman was at JAXA's Japanese Space Exploration Center to observe the deployment of IKAROS' solar sails.
Planetary Society Hails Falcon 9 Test as Great Achievement
The Planetary Society today issued this statement congratulating SpaceX on the test flight of Falcon 9.
Falcon 9's first launch successful!
Just a brief note to congratulate Elon Musk and SpaceX on the successful launch of their Falcon 9 rocket on its first attempt today!
The June 3 Jupiter Impact: 22 hours later
Time to take stock of what happened a day ago. The worldwide, round-the-clock nature of planetary science is both exhilarating and challenging!
IKAROS sail deployment proceeding
Planetary Society Executive Director Lou Friedman is at JAXA's Japanese Space Exploration Center to observe the deployment of IKAROS' solar sails.
Confirmation of the Jupiter impact from Christopher Go
The impact flash on Jupiter observed earlier today by Anthony Wesley has been confirmed by Philippines-based amateur astronomer Christopher Go.
A NEW! Impact on Jupiter
On the same day as a team of astronomers released new Hubble Space Telescope images of last year's Jupiter impact, the original discoverer of the 2009 impact scar, Anthony Wesley, reported on an amateur astronomy forum that he had observed a new impact on Jupiter.
Falcon 9 ready for first flight
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is poised for its maiden flight tomorrow, Friday, June 4, between 11:00 and 15:00 Eastern time.