Hayabusa2 Asteroid Sample Capsule Lands in Australia

takyon writes:

Asteroid capsule 'found' in Australian desert

A recovery team in Australia has found a space capsule carrying the first large quantities of rock from an asteroid.

The capsule, containing material from a space rock called Ryugu, parachuted down near Woomera in South Australia.

The samples were originally collected by a Japanese spacecraft called Hayabusa-2, which spent more than a year investigating the object.

The container detached from Hayabusa-2, later entering the Earth's atmosphere.

The official Hayabusa-2 Twitter account reported that the capsule and its parachute had been found at 19:47 GMT.

Also at CNET.

Previously: Hayabusa2 Approaches Asteroid Ryugu
Hayabusa2 Reaches Asteroid 162173 Ryugu
Hayabusa2 Deploys MINERVA Landers to Asteroid Ryugu
Japan's Hopping Rovers Capture Amazing Views of Asteroid Ryugu
Short-Lived MASCOT Lander Reaches Asteroid Ryugu
Hayabusa2 Spacecraft Faces Difficulties in Landing and Collecting a Sample from an Asteroid
Hayabusa2 "Lands" on Asteroid Ryugu

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