At the moment within the historical past of astronomy, the primary spacecraft lands on an asteroid.
The ultimate picture transmitted by NEAR Shoemaker was shot about 394 toes (120 m) from the floor of Eros, earlier than the spacecraft touched down there. Credit score: NASA/JPL/JHUAPL
Close to Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) Shoemaker launched Feb. 17, 1996, the primary mission of NASA’s Discovery program, which centered on comparatively cheap and frequent explorations. NEAR Shoemaker was supposed to orbit Eros and return particulars about its construction; en path to the asteroid, it imaged 253 Mathilde throughout a flyby, and have become the primary solar-powered spacecraft to journey past Mars.
An issue throughout a rocket burn in December 1998 delayed NEAR Shoemaker’s arrival at Eros by over a yr, but it surely efficiently started orbiting there on Feb. 14, 2000. It was the primary human-made object to orbit an asteroid. For a yr, the spacecraft gathered data on Eros’ magnetic subject, composition, and topography, sending over 160,000 photographs again to Earth. The mission ended with a managed descent to the Eros’ floor on Feb. 12, 2001, making it the primary spacecraft to land on an asteroid. NEAR Shoemaker touched down at simply 4 mph (6.4 km/h) and continued transmitting knowledge for an extra two weeks earlier than sending its final sign on Feb. 28.
