Fiery video: Hayabusa returns

Paul Gilster posts video of the fiery and long-delayed return of Hayabusa, which, despite difficulties, may have returned samples from a landing on asteroid Itokawa in 2005. Paul comments on the importance of the landing.

 

We have so few instances of material recovered from space — Moon rocks, cometary dust (from the Stardust mission), solar wind particles (Genesis), and whatever Hayabusa bears — and we may now have new samples that have changed little since the beginning of our solar system.

Wayne