Japan’s Hayabusa2 capsule carrying asteroid samples from Ryugu returned to the Earth.
A capsule containing pristine asteroid fragments that may unlock secrets about the formation of the universe has been recovered in the South Australian outback after landing safely back to Earth on Sunday 06 December 2020.
For the past six years, Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft has conducted a remarkable 5.2bn km mission to extract the first-ever sub-surface samples from the asteroid Ryugu, which scientists hope will shed light on the origins of life.
In the early hours of last Sunday, Hayabusa2 returned past Earth and dropped a capsule containing the precious sample, weighing less than 0.1 grams, down into the South Australian outback.
The capsule briefly turned into a fireball and streaked across the sky as it returned to the Earth’s atmosphere, before landing in the Woomera prohibited area.
Search teams have found the capsule, about 40cm in diameter, and collection work had begun on last Sunday morning.
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