A Japanese spacecraft has delivered an unprecedented look at one of the near-Earth asteroids that frequently fly by our planet.

Hayabusa, Japanese for "falcon," achieved a close encounter with asteroid 25143 Itokawa last November.

At 1,640 feet (500 meters) long, the asteroid is a small, rocky, "S-type" commonly found in the inner regions of the main asteroid belt (virtual solar system).

To some observers Itokawa resembles a lumpy potato. Others see a celestial sea otter with a small "head" and larger "body" (sea otter photo and profile).

Hayabusa hovered over the oddly shaped asteroid taking images and readings before achieving a daring touchdown in an attempt to capture the first ever asteroid-surface samples.



Posted by: Sean    Source

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