ONC-W1 and ONC-T imaging instruments tagged posts

Hayabusa2 reveals more Secrets from Ryugu

A line diagram with red and blue sections
History of Ryugu. A diagram to show how researchers believe the surface of Ryugu evolved over time © 2020 Morota et al.

Ryugu’s interaction with the sun changes what we know about asteroid history. In February and July of 2019, the Hayabusa2 spacecraft briefly touched down on the surface of near-Earth asteroid Ryugu. The readings it took with various instruments at those times have given researchers insight into the physical and chemical properties of 1-kilometer-wide asteroid. These findings could help explain the history of Ryugu and other asteroids, as well as the solar system at large.

When our solar system formed around 5 billion years ago, most of the material it formed from became the sun, and a fraction of a percent became the planets and solid bodies, including asteroids...

Read More