The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced that they have been given the go ahead from the Australian Federal Government to land the sample from the HAYABUSA asteroid return mission in Australia at the Woomera Prohibited Area in South Australia. According to the JAXA media release, the sample recovery capsule is expected to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere and land at the Woomera Prohibited Area in South Australia around midnight (AEST) on June 13 2010.
The HAYABUSA space probe was launched on 9 May 2003 and travelled to the small near-Earth asteroid 25143 Itokawa. The Hayabusa spacecraft, formerly known as MUSES-C for Mu Space Engineering Spacecraft C, was launched on 9 May 2003 and rendezvoused with Itokawa in mid-September 2005. After arriving at Itokawa, Hayabusa studied the asteroid’s shape, spin, topography, colour, composition, density, and history. In November 2005, it landed on the asteroid and attempted to collect samples but failed to do so. Nevertheless, there is a high probability that some dust swirled into the sampling chamber, so it was sealed, and the spacecraft commanded to return to the Earth. The spacecraft also carried a detachable mini-lander MINERVA, but this failed to reach the surface. Engine and communication problems have significantly delayed the HAYABUSA spacecraft from returning to Earth.
The main spacecraft will not return to Earth. The re-entry capsule will detach from the main spacecraft at a distance of about 300,000 to 400,000 km from the Earth, and the capsule will coast on a ballistic trajectory, re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere. The capsule will experience peak deceleration of about 25 G and heating rates approximately 30 times those experienced by the Apollo spacecraft.
And in a related piece of trivia, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency named part of the asteroid Itokawa after the desert on which it hopes the sample capsule will safely land. One end of the skinny potato shaped asteroid has a large basin on it and it has been named ‘The Woomera Desert’.
Update (23 April 2010): A story about this mission has now been posted on Space.com.
