NEAR Spacecraft Survives Landing on Asteroid Eros
Explanation:
Yesterday NEAR-Shoemaker became the
first
spacecraft to land on an asteroid
and send signals back from its surface.
Since the
robot spacecraft
was not designed for such a
contingency,
the success of the landing on
asteroid
433 Eros
was not assured.
Shown above
is the last picture taken by
NEAR-Shoemaker before its touchdown.
The streaking on the lower part of the image
was caused by the loss of
telemetry
as the satellite impacted the
surface.
The image was taken 130 meters above the surface and
spans 6 meters across.
Rocks as small as a human hand are visible.
As engineers
continue
to try to communicate
with the beached car-sized spacecraft,
scientists will work to understand features visible in the
highest resolution
photographs ever taken of an asteroid.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
