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Hayabusa2 Pulls Off First-Ever Laser Ranging Experiment on an Asteroid
Key Takeaways
- JAXA's Hayabusa2 conducted the first successful laser-ranging experiment against an asteroid during its July 5 flyby of Torifune.
- The laser fired twice at 6:29 p.m., 56.5 and 57.5 seconds before closest approach, from distances of about 20 km and 15 km.
- Hayabusa2 was traveling at 5.3 km/s (about 18,000 km/h) when the pulses struck patches roughly 30 and 23 meters across.
- The experiment used the LALT LIDAR laser altimeter, a derivative of the instrument flown on JAXA's Kaguya lunar orbiter.
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DT Editorial Team··via phys.org