Japanese space agency Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) on Sunday (IST) claimed that it has created history by successfully landing two unmanned rovers on an asteroid.
After the rovers separated from the Hayabusa2 spacecraft and landed on the asteroid Ryugu, JAXA, in a statement, said that the two rovers are in good condition and are transmitting images and data, reports CNN. Known as MINERVA-II1, the rovers are collectively world’s first mobile exploration robot to land on the surface of an asteroid.
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Expressing his joy over the success of the project, Takashi Kubota, a spokesman for the space agency, said that he felt awed by the achievement and that it is a real charm of deep space exploration.
Asteroids are believed to have rich information about the formation of the solar system billions of years ago. JAXA also claimed that a kilometre-wide diamond-shaped space rock is rich in water and organic materials that would allow scientists to clarify interactions between the building blocks of Earth and the evolution of its oceans and life, thereby developing solar system science.
The rovers are fitted with seven cameras and will take stereo images of the asteroid’s surface and are also equipped with temperature gauges, optical sensors, an accelerometer and a set of gyroscopes.
(With ANI Inputs)