Replying to @AkaSci@fosstodon.org
Also, the JAXA Hayabusa2 spacecraft will fly by asteroid Torifune on Sunday July 5. It's objective is to test navigation systems for a future asteroid deflection mission.
See https://fosstodon.org/@AkaSci/116841633571799400
#Space #Asteroid #Science
3/n
AkaSci 🛰️@AkaSci@fosstodon.orgRemember Hayabusa2, the plucky JAXA spacecraft that visited asteroid Ryugu in June 2018, scooped up some rock samples and returned them to Earth in December 2020?
It's still out there. It will fly by asteroid Torifune on Sunday July 5, at a relative speed of 5 km/s and a closest distance of 1 km. The data from this flyby will help accurately guide probes to impact and deflect small asteroids in future.
In 2031, Hayabusa2 will rendezvous with asteroid 1998 KY26.