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Hayabusa Probe Arrives at Destination
david.given writes "The Japanese space probe Hayabusa has just arrived at its destination, the asteroid Itokawa, and is taking pictures. The largely autonomous ion-drive powered vehicle was launched in 2003 and was supposed to have arrived last year, but a solar flare damaged the solar panels causing a reduction in power. It will study the asteroid for two months before collecting a sample from the surface and departing for Earth, which it should reach in 2007. It's a pity that NASA's asteroid rover, which Hayabusa was going to drop off, got cancelled due to budgetry constraints..."
Will it use the magical firewheel of protection, or be followed by a hazy clone of itself that mimics its actions?
/ryu hayabusa... ninja gaiden. ding.
I am scientifically inaccurate.
I am impressed by the Japanese mission:
HAYABUSA's mission: to bring back samples from an asteroid and investigate the mysteries of the birth of the solar system.
And I am sufficiently unimpressed by NASA's inability to even piggyback a rover with this. There is so much science to do that doesn't have to do with rocketry, that doesn't have to do with sending people into space, that doesn't have to do with spending billions on a boondoggle space program that is more concerned with keeping certain government vendors in the money rather than actually getting real science done.
Mars Rovers: Good NASA
Space Shuttle: Bad NASA
Hubble ST: Good NASA
ISS: NASA can't even send people up there to rendezvous
I'm sure someone will want to say "what about that big ol' comet we blasted with our satellite. Did we get any samples back? Did we get anything new except maybe a little more practice at aiming our missiles? Not really.
Hayabusa looks like it's going to be headed back to Earth with samples. Real science. I just wish it were Americans at the leading edge of scientific space exploration.
Jesus saved me from my past. He can save you as well.
..to get samples from any extra-terrestrial object, I think what is going to be most important out of this project is the ion-driven technology that propels the craft, as well as the re-entry capsule. Though it certianly might have been nice if they could have made the whole craft re-enterable; these things are far from cheap, and anything reusable goes a long way towards motivating people to supporting funding in NASA/JAXA.
Going back to school for entry-level jobs?
...did Hayabusa get his revenge?
Circumcision is child abuse.
"its name". Sorry.
Raise your children as if you were teaching them to raise your grandchildren, because you are.
From the post: "but a solar flare damaged the solar panels causing a reduction in power."
And now that it's so very close to its target, we have another one coming.
"No problem. I have the capacity to do infinite work so long as you don't mind that my quality approaches zero."-Dilbert
Yep, you've got a point. What's the hurry? We need to fix things inside the cave first.
Dahlmann tightly grips the knife, which he may have no idea how to use, and steps out into the plain.
All this talk of probes and roids is making my butt itch.
"new chemical elements"
There aren't any elements left. We've filled in the chart already. Game over on that one.
There may be some compounds that we haven't seen, though.
Raise your children as if you were teaching them to raise your grandchildren, because you are.
As an aside, to Japanese spacecraft have particular trouble with solar flares? Or just horrible luck? Didn't they have a Mars probe stagger past that planet but not make orbit for about the same reasons?
Who do you get to be an expert to tell you something's not obvious? The least insightful person you can find? -J Roberts
We have many good theories for origins and formations of galaxies, but nothing more than guesses at the specifics of how the brain functions and develops at a neural level.
The most stated comparison is that we know more about space than the deep sea, though it is questionable.
When you say we have "no clue" that's a given considering the ~infinite complexity of science and information in any field; but compared to many other fields, space knowledge is well devloped and well off.
Atoms compose elements. A material that is composed of only one type of atom is called an element. Atoms are measured by the number of protons make up their nucleus. This number is called its "atomic number". Hydrogen has 1 proton in its nucleus, Helium has 2, and the count goes up from there.
Now, we have identified all elements from 1 proton-nuclei (Hydrogen) through 112 proton-nuclei (Ununbium).
It is theoretically possible that there are other elements that exist in space that we haven't found yet. They would have to be larger than 112 protons per nucleus, though. In our surrounding vacinity, it is highly unlikely that we would find something like that.
Jesus saved me from my past. He can save you as well.
I think you are missing out the point that a lot of research is being done and money being spent on all the points you stated. I think it is shortsighted to stop all pure science just because there are problems "at home". There will always be problems "at home".
I wish humans would quit giving each other debilitating but preventable diseases. There isn't much that money can do to stop that. I'm not sure why humans should be wasting so much money curing a disease that people shouldn't be contracting.
And building infrastructures for impovershed nations, well, the problem is that impovershed nations are generally caused by not necessarily lack of money, the root of the lack of money is corrupt governments and/or lawlessness. There's little point in building necessary infrastructure if thugs are going to be allowed to remain and destroy that infrastructure.
Hayabusa includes the Minerva hopper - gravity on asteroids is so slight that you can get around on springs - no rockets or NASA rovers required. That's the key - that's why planetary exploration makes so little sense - when you can get to an asteroid and mine it - and return for a small fraction of the delta-V required to get back from the moon, or Mars.
Mostly because they are created through heavy-element fusion (Ca and U in the case of Uub) and the resulting element decays into lower-atomic number elements in microseconds.
So we would need to find some place hospitable for fusion (maybe the Sun) and full of heavy elements (maybe not the Sun).
Jesus saved me from my past. He can save you as well.
"A solar flare damaged the solar panels causing a reduction in power."
Ah, powered by irony. Those Japanese are always on the cutting edge.
TLoM: Nerds + DDR + Rednecks for the win!
The funny thing is how ignorant you are. Read this.
Regards,
Steve
By cancelling all these pork barrel projects the administration was able to give you a tax refund. I enjoyed my three hundred dollars. It paid for the gas for my huge honkin' SUV for a whole month. It would have been two months except that Dick and George's arab friends raised their prices. But at least all those refunds went to a good cause. If the democrats were still running things a lot of our disposable income would be going to cocaine farmers in South America. But we can rest assured that when the robed men that George Bush holds hands with collect our extra cash that they will do something good with it. I'll bet they have lots of charitable causes that they donate to. Yup, I hear those Saudi's give to lots of worthy organizations... So the next time you complain about not adding some expensive, experimental gadget to some japanese rocket just think for a second about where that money would come from and have a little sympathy for those poor millionaires who would have to cut back on single malt scotch and exotic asian hookers. And for what? So some scientists can drive a remote control car around on an asteroid. We don't need Science to tell us about the universe. Everything you need to know is in the GoOD Book. Want to know how the universe was created? Pick up a Bible and read. It's right there in the first chapter.
Liberals call everyone Nazis yet they are the closest thing to it.
I think it's hilarious that slashdot is on the one hand a reliable bastion of mainstream science, pro-evolution, anti-intelligent-design, etc.
While on the other hand, the readers subscribe to the most bizarre ideas. For example, the parent post (right now the only post at score +5), bemoans the dangers of Japanese space probes bringing back "other elements" from "the galaxies and universes".
But this is only scratching the surface. You only need to browse a few days to find dozens of highly-moderated posts about secret Pentagon weather-control devices, diseases caused by internet telephonty and so on.
It would be funny -- even hilarious -- except that the readers of slashdot are actually among the most well-read and technically-minded people in the world. So instead, I must say, woe to the people of Earth!
All this talk of probes and roids is making my butt itch.
All this rocket science and we can't get ass medicine that actually works.
Table-ized A.I.
I thought the GP's post was a brilliant troll, but then I read yours and saw how outclassed he really is.
Who said NASA'a space shuttle was bad? It is revolutionary, just expensive as hell and slightly ahead of its time
It's like watching Bobby Flay slice open a flounder. Elegant, deft, and just a little bit repulsive. Bravo!
By "some" I meant we might find some on a particular asteroid, not that there were only a few left.
Raise your children as if you were teaching them to raise your grandchildren, because you are.
http://outpostnine.com/editorials/teacher1.html
"So anyway, the whole "black men have big dicks" stereotype stretches far and wide, even to the nation's 12 year olds. Part of why I'm here is not just to kind of sort of help teach English, but to "broaden cultural perceptions". Break stereotypes, challenge preconcieved notions, all that jazz. That's good and all, but this is one stereotype I think I'm just gonna let slide.
So anyway, I get asked "bigu dikku" A LOT. Every 2-3 days in fact, which is amazing considering I got asked this question about 2-3 times *in my entire life* in America. Locker room jokes aside. How do you answer that anyway? To a 12-15 year old? I wave them off and say "No no no." Then they say "Oh, sumaru dikku?" (trans. "Small dick?") and OF COURSE that's wrong so I have to correct them. It's just a no-win stiuation."
The latest Slashdot meme.
How can that be, when we go to places that have _numbers_ right in the name?
I mean, which sounds more scientific: "Engineering Building," or "Building 34/35"? The answer is, of course, neither, because they're both engineering buildings.
Which, I guess, makes them engineerific. Or is it enginific? It can't be that, otherwise we'd say "scienteer."
Actually, the probe would have been there much much sooner, but someone accidentally entered "up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, select, start" when they should have entered "up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, start".
It's a common mistake. It's too bad it had to happen on the controls to this thing though.
NASA has, however, licensed the control technology used on this probe. Unfortunately, they are unsure as to whether or not their current shuttle control systems have enough power to be able to take commands from the unit. Fortunately, when the engineers do something wrong, they will have the assurance of being able to grab the cord 1 foot up from the controls and smack it repeatedly into a cement basement floor with no damage.
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...welcome our robotic Japanese asteroid exploring probe overlords, even if they no longer carry NASA rovers. C'mon, laugh! At least I didn't mention Beowulf clusters or Soviet Russia.
Quantum mechanics: the dreams that stuff is made of.
It seems like these probes that study asteroids are really grasping at straws. What are we looking for in the asteroids? Are we looking for anything specific? Why are we looking for that? Etc. All knowledge is worth having but searching without a particular goal in mind is unlikely to get good results.
Even in popular American mythology the planets are named things like P3X-403 ;)
Orationem pulchram non habens, scribo ista linea in lingua Latina
Well, that was certainly fast!
Damn it, I've got the mod points but I decided to post something before I read this -1 flamebait drivel. Now I regret wasting my chance!
Orationem pulchram non habens, scribo ista linea in lingua Latina
In that case, I rescind what I said.
Because the asteroids in our solar system are made of the same "star-stuff" that Earth is made from. In other words, the elements in our asteroids were made in the same star or stars as the elements in the Earth. So it's unlikely we'd find any elements in an asteroid that we couldn't find here on Earth. That's why.
Communications from the Hayabusa probe suddenly and mysteriously fell silent after it returned this image http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Godz illa.jpg.
That's one fast motorbike and a hell of a ramp.
A new country like Timor Leste is "behind the eight-ball" as most of its premium resources (sandalwood and marble) have been mined. It is now reliant on Australia modifying mineral rights arrangements to allow access to oil and gas royalties, which are being developed by foreign (Aust/British) interests (disclosure: I am a Woodside Petroleum shareholder).
Slashdot: Where nerds gather to pool their ignorance
The GPP is a troll, but not entirely wrong. We didn't really know that dark matter existed until the recent COBE microwave data confirmed that theory for odd galactic rotation speeds, and we still aren't sure what dark matter really is. Not a new "chemical element" of course, but something weirder. Who knows what else is out there (not on nearby asteroids of course, but OUT there) - all we know is what we see through telescopes from our little backwater. Heck, there might even be new chemical elements, if there really is an "island of stability" past 120 or so (though I hear that hypothesis is losing credibility these days).
Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
That's no troll! Ghost Rider's 500hp Hayabusa is a legend! http://www.level66.com/viewer-26831.html
Actually, I have to admit - when I saw the headline, the first thing I thought was "I knew Hayabusas were crotch rockets, but that's extreme..."
"I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
Windows has detected an undetectable error.
Your statement includes the assumption that it's possible to fix things "inside the cave". That's quite a wild assumption.
True confidence comes not from realising you are as good as your peers, but that your peers are as bad as you are.
It will study the asteroid for two months before collecting a sample from the surface and departing for Earth
The original press release was edited by the Japanese Government, the original version read as follows:
It will study the asteroid for two months before awaking Godzilla.
The funny thing about the "island of stability" hypothesis is that the elements just need to be more stable, have slightly longer half lives.
so element 111 has a half life of 3 seconds and element 114 has a half life of about 30 seconds because its one of the supposed "island of stability" or at least one of it's isotopes is.
so any way, those half lives are short enough that if a 1000kg lump of the longest lived isotope of 114 was kicked out of the sun, say 3 billion years ago (94608000000000000 seconds)
thats 3.1536E15 halflives
I dont think there's going to be much left.
After 10 half-lives there is 2^-10 (0.098%) left.
so after 3 billion years our 1000kg would have 3.172e-14% left. or 0.00000003172g,
expect that my maths is probably wrong,
and there isn't any left at all...
With all due respect, I wasn't name calling. You were making unfounded, uneducated claims about the usefulness of the space program. There are way too many Americans that do that exact same thing and each one of them is a threat to our very important space program. Being called ignorant isn't necessarily an insult, everyone is ignorant on one topic or another, I was simply pointing out one that you were. Granted, I was slightly peeved because it is irritating how many people don't realize the many benefits of NASA.
Regards,
Steve
All hail the Flying Toasters!
We know a lot more about how the brain functions and develops at a neural level than we do about the formation of galaxies, but it's a far more complex system than the formations of galaxies. We have gotten to the point where we know what the meanings are of the patterns of signals sent to the brain from the eyes. We know the grouse functions of most parts of the brain, and each of its cells but it's extremely complex.
The problem is the brains pattern is important where only the rough shape really matters when dealing with galaxies. The best way to describe this is if you remove a few thousand stars out of galaxies not much happens but if you pick the right few thousand neurons you can have an extremely noticeable effect. And this works on many levels if you damage the right segments of DNA and you can kill a cell while only destroying a minute fraction of it's overall structure.
As to the oceans we have varied good maps of the whole things and only vague guesses as to a tiny fraction of the overall universe. The idea is that the universe is fairly random and it's not going to affect us so having a vague idea of what's going on seems to satisfy most people. After all I don't really care how many planets orbit the average star within 3,000,000,000 light years of us so our inability to find that out does not really bother most people.
HAYABUSA will not only gather samples but also observe the asteroid with various scientific devices and measures. For that purpose, it is equipped with a Telescope Wide-View Cameras and Light Detection and Ranging, as well as with a Near Infrared Spectrometer. It will also employ a hopping robot, which can move around on the asteroid's surface.
A hopping robot? Sounds suspiciously like Looney Tunes. The big question is "Did they complete the programming so that it can steal the Explosive Space Modulator from Marvin when he lands on the asteroid?"
We can put a Hayabusa on an Itokawa, but we still can't cure the common cold.
Proverbs 21:19
"The Japanese space probe Hayabusa has just arrived at its destination, the asteroid Itokawa, and is taking pictures." Will the Japanese tourist stereotypes never end?
I've heard talk about ion engines for a long time, but this is the first time I've heard of one actually being used. Of course, it's quite possible I haven't been paying attention... Does NASA use ion engines on its deep space probes? If not, is this a significant breakthrough? That is, are there notable advantages to ion propulsion over conventional rocket engines?
Great men are almost always bad men--Lord Acton's Corollary
The funny thing is that the meteorites, stuff that falls to Earth, is judged to be mainly asteroids with the odd piece of Moon or Mars. Comets don't seem to generate meteorites, but they generate most of the meteors -- I guess comets are made of too small pieces or grains to make it all the way down without burning up.
Is there anything we will learn from this asteroid that we don't know from meteorites? Is this asteroid representative of a class of asteroids known from their spectra? It is believed that the known meteorites are a biased sample of the asteroids -- probably it is only a few asteroids that had recent collisions spalling off material that is feeding the current supply of meteorites.
The two types of asteroid I am most interested are the C-type -- a common type of asteroid but rare among the meteorites. It would be interesting to know the connection between these carbonaceous asteroids and the comets. The other type of asteroid of great interest would be the metallic ones on account of the mining potential.
Multi-Billion dollar spelunking expeditions in outer space. What could we all POSSIBLY do with billions of dollars right here on Earth to benefit us all right now? Hmmm... alternative energy research? Nah. Cures for debilitating and deadly diseases? Nah. Improving the infrastructures of impovershed nations? Nah. Teaching people how to farm and improving their ability to do so to help keep them from satrving to death? Nah.
Yeah. Stupid NASA.
Man, that sig is priceless :)
Are you a grammar Nazi? I'm trying to improve my English; please correct my errors!
My Buddy has a Huyabusa 2002 1300cc and that thing can scream !!! He can stand it up doing 100MPH. I hear that the German's call the Huyabusa's (Suzuki GSXR 2002 1300) "The WidowMaker" I know this thing is poerfull, but who would have known they would take them to outer space.... LOL
Paul E. Bahre
Where are you getting the dark matter information? We know the galaxies were rotating too quickly long before COBE. (In fact, as far as I know, COBE didn't measure rotation speeds of galaxies. It surely wasn't the first, anyway.) Galactic rotation curves were plotted in the 70's by Vera Rubin and others. The evidence for dark matter goes back even farther to the 30's when Zwicky noted that glaxies in clusters were moving too quickly to remain bound to the clusters unless there was more mass there than we could see.