Small-body mission · NASA / JPL

Stardust

NASA's comet sample-return mission — it flew through the coma of comet Wild 2, captured dust in aerogel, and parachuted the sample capsule to Earth in 2006: the first sample return from a comet, and the first return of solid material from beyond the Moon (NASA's Genesis had returned solar-wind atoms in 2004). Its extended mission (Stardust-NExT) later imaged the Deep Impact crater on Tempel 1.

CompletedFlyby Mission Sample-Return Mission

This is the small-body-missions view of Stardust. See its main mission page for the full profile.

Targets & sample

Target bodies:Wild 2

Also:Comet 81P/Wild 2 (sample); asteroid 5535 Annefrank and comet 9P/Tempel 1 (extended-mission flybys)

Returned sample:Wild 2 Sample (Stardust)

Mission & science

Goals: Capture and return dust from a comet's coma, plus interstellar dust, for laboratory analysis.
Engineering milestones: First cometary sample return, and the first return of solid material from beyond the Moon (2006); revisited Tempel 1 as Stardust-NExT (2011).
Science discoveries: Wild 2 grains include high-temperature minerals, showing large-scale mixing in the early Solar System; the amino acid glycine was detected.
Sample return: Thousands of particles captured in aerogel, recovered in Utah in January 2006 (mass not meaningfully quantifiable).
Outcome: Complete success.

Knowledge connections

VisitedTempel 1
VisitedWild 2
Returned samples fromWild 2
Member of groupFlyby Mission
Member of groupSample-Return Mission
Launched byDelta II
Operated byNASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
VisitedWild 2
Collected sampleWild 2 Sample (Stardust)
Mission includesStardust Sample-Return Capsule
Associated withReturn & Reentry
Associated withStardust@home

Sources

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

NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.
NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics
Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.

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Stardust

Mission & science

Goals

Capture and return dust from a comet's coma, plus interstellar dust, for laboratory analysis.

Engineering milestones

First cometary sample return, and the first return of solid material from beyond the Moon (2006); revisited Tempel 1 as Stardust-NExT (2011).

Science discoveries

Wild 2 grains include high-temperature minerals, showing large-scale mixing in the early Solar System; the amino acid glycine was detected.

Sample return

Thousands of particles captured in aerogel, recovered in Utah in January 2006 (mass not meaningfully quantifiable).

Outcome

Complete success.

Sources

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

NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration

Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.

Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.

NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics

Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.