Planets and Moons  ID: 14089

A Box of Treasure from Asteroid Ryugu

Asteroid 162173 Ryugu is a carbon-rich pile of rubble, with an orbit that passes between Earth and Mars and a shape that resembles a kilometer-wide spinning top. Scientists think that Ryugu contains pristine organic material from the dawn of the solar system – and that it could hold clues to the formation and evolution of life. That’s why the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) sent the Hayabusa2 spacecraft to study Ryugu and collect a sample, which it delivered to the Australian Outback in December 2020. Now, NASA scientist Heather Graham has received a box of Ryugu’s treasures from her JAXA colleagues, bringing a relic of the early solar system to a lab on Earth.

More from NASA: First look at Ryugu asteroid sample reveals it is organic-rich.

 

Related


For More Information

JAXA's Hayabusa2 Project

NASA Solar System: Asteroids, Comets & Meteors

NASA: First Look at Ryugu Asteroid Sample Reveals it is Organic-Rich

Nature Communications: Uracil in the Carbonaceous Asteroid (162173) Ryugu


Credits

Dan Gallagher (KBR Wyle Services, LLC): Producer
John Caldwell (Advocates in Manpower Management, Inc.): Videographer
Heather Graham (Catholic University of America): Scientist
Hiroshi Naraoka (Kyushu University): Scientist
Yasuhiro Oba (Hokkaido University): Scientist
Yoshinori Takano (JAMSTEC): Scientist
Jason Dworkin (NASA/GSFC): Scientist
Daniel Glavin (NASA/GSFC): Scientist
LK Ward (KBR Wyle Services, LLC): Narrator
William Steigerwald (NASA/GSFC): Science Writer
Yoshiko Sugahara: Support
Lonnie Shekhtman (ADNET Systems, Inc.): Support
Aaron E. Lepsch (ADNET Systems, Inc.): Technical Support
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

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This item is part of this series:
Narrated Movies

Keywords:
SVS >> Asteroid
SVS >> HDTV
GCMD >> Location >> Australia
GCMD >> Location >> Japan
SVS >> Goddard Space Flight Center
SVS >> Astrobiology
SVS >> Laboratory
NASA Science >> Planets and Moons
SVS >> Chemistry
SVS >> JAXA
SVS >> Organic
SVS >> Sample Return
SVS >> Ryugu
SVS >> Hayabusa2

GCMD keywords can be found on the Internet with the following citation: Olsen, L.M., G. Major, K. Shein, J. Scialdone, S. Ritz, T. Stevens, M. Morahan, A. Aleman, R. Vogel, S. Leicester, H. Weir, M. Meaux, S. Grebas, C.Solomon, M. Holland, T. Northcutt, R. A. Restrepo, R. Bilodeau, 2013. NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0