Hayabusa

Mission overview

Hayabusa was the first mission to return a sample from an asteroid, the near-Earth asteroid Itokawa.

Outcome & discoveries

Returned tiny grains of Itokawa to Earth in 2010 despite numerous technical setbacks.

• ★First asteroid surface samples returned to Earth

Mission profile

Knowledge connections

• Operated byJAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)
• Part of programHayabusa program
• Mission target25143 Itokawa
• Visited25143 Itokawa
• Returned samples from25143 Itokawa
• Member of groupSample-Return Mission
• Member of groupRendezvous Mission
• Member of groupLander Mission
• Landed on25143 Itokawa
• Collected sampleItokawa Sample (Hayabusa)
• Mission includesHayabusa Sample-Return Capsule
• Associated withReturn & Reentry
• Tracked byJAXA Deep Space Network
• Associated withHayabusa Samples Asteroid Itokawa
• Associated withFirst Asteroid Sample Return

Related missions

Sources

Facts on this topic will be cited from these primary and reference sources.

• JAXAJapan Aerospace Exploration Agency

  Japanese missions (Hayabusa, Akatsuki) and space science.