IF JAPANESE space officials never hear from Hayabusa again, they鈥檒l probably be relieved after all the grief it has given them in the last few weeks. Following the euphoria when the probe finally landed on the asteroid on 26 November, it now seems that the spacecraft did not collect the asteroid samples after all.
鈥淲e found that the possibility is very high that a metal bullet to collect samples was not actually fired,鈥� an official for the Japanese Space Agency JAXA said. 鈥淎nd therefore the possibility is also very high that Hayabusa has failed to collect samples.鈥�
Just after the landing, the spacecraft put itself into 鈥渟afe mode鈥� 鈥� all unnecessary systems were shut down 鈥� because of a problem with one of its thrusters. Only after the communication was restored did ground controllers recover the data about the landing, which suggests that the pellet was not fired. Also, the flawed thruster means Hayabusa may not be able to leave the asteroid by mid-December. If it misses that window, it must wait another three years before the distance between Earth and the asteroid is suitable for the return trip. But its battery may not last that long.
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鈥淣ow a flawed thruster means Hayabusa may not be able to leave the asteroid for years鈥�
