A Japanese space probe has arrived at an asteroid after a three-and-a half year, 300 million kilometer journey through deep space to collect information about the origins of the solar system.
The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency says the Hayabusa2 probe entered into a position about 20 kilometers above the Ryugu asteroid Wednesday. The probe will spend the next 18 months taking photographic images of Ryugu, which is named after an undersea palace in ancient Japanese folklore, and deploy a French-German built lander to study the surface.
Hayabusa2 will eventually land on Ryugu itself during the mission. It will send out a device that will shoot a 2-kilogram copper projectile into the surface that will create a small crater. The probe will land near the surface and collect the underground material blown out of the crater.
Hayabusa2 is due to return to Earth in late 2020.