Black ‘sand-like’ asteroid dust found

The dust was found in the capsule's outer shell, agency officials said, with more substantial samples expected to be found when they open the inner container, a delicate task.

Tokyo: Black sandy dust found in a capsule brought to Earth by a Japanese space probe is from the distant asteroid Ryugu, scientists confirmed after opening it on Monday. The discovery comes a week after the Hayabusa-2 probe dropped off its capsule, which entered the atmosphere in a streak of light before landing in the Australian desert and then being transported to Japan.

The Japanese space agency (JAXA) released a picture of a small deposit of sooty material inside the metal box — a first glimpse at the results of an unprecedented six-year mission for the unmanned probe. The dust was found in the capsule’s outer shell, agency officials said, with more substantial samples expected to be found when they open the inner container, a delicate task.

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“JAXA has confirmed that samples derived from the asteroid Ryugu are inside the sample container,” the agency said. “We were able to confirm black, sand-like particles which are believed to be derived from the asteroid Ryugu.”