JAXA to fling Hayabusa 2 to 2nd asteroid after Australia flyover

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Japan’s Hayabusa 2 space probe will continue its long and remarkable journey to another heavenly body after it delivers asteroid samples to Earth later this year, education minister Koichi Hagiuda said.

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The 1998KY26 asteroid, in orbit between Earth and Mars, has been picked as the next destination for the Hayabusa 2, with a landing expected in July 2031, Hagiuda said at a news conference following a Cabinet meeting on Sept. 15.

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He said the next leg of the probe’s journey will start after it moves above Australia, where it will release a capsule believed to contain rock and sand samples from the Ryugu asteroid.

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The 1998KY26 asteroid, which measures about 30 meters in size, is thought to be rotating at high speed. The Hayabusa 2 project team is considering conducting a comparative study of the asteroid and Ryugu since 1998KY26 is also likely to have rich natural resources, such as water and carbon.

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The team also plans to have the Hayabusa 2 travel near another asteroid and change the orbit of the probe using the Earth’s gravity before it arrives at 1998KY26.

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The new destination was chosen after the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency narrowed down a list of about 350 candidate destinations where the probe can reach with its remaining fuel to two.

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“It’s like an athlete who scored two tries at a Rugby World Cup game attempting to compete in the Olympics 10 years after switching over to figure skating,” Seiichiro Watanabe, a scientist in the Hayabusa 2 probe project and professor of planetary science at Nagoya University, said of the new plan.

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“We had never expected that the Hayabusa 2 would carry out another mission by using its remaining power, but it’s a scientifically meaningful and fascinating plan.”

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