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Explanation: What are parts of this asteroid's surface so smooth? No one is yet sure, but it may have to do with the dynamics of an asteroid that is a loose pile of rubble rather than a solid rock. The unusual asteroid is currently being visited by the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa that is documenting its unusual structure and mysterious lack of craters. Last month, Hayabusa actually touched down on one of the smooth patches, dubbed the MUSES Sea, and collected soil samples that will eventually be returned to Earth for analysis. Unfortunately, the robot Hayabusa craft has been experiencing communications problems and so its departure for Earth has been delayed until 2007. Computer simulations show that asteroid 500-meter asteroid Itokawa may impact the Earth within the next few million years.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: asteroid
Publications with words: asteroid
See also:
- APOD: 2026 August 5 Á Spokes on Saturn's B Ring
- APOD: 2026 July 29 Á Psyche Receives Gravity Assist from Mars
- APOD: 2026 June 30 Á Unusually Smooth Sections of Asteroid Itokawa
- 3D Bennu
- Ida and Dactyl: Asteroid and Moon
- Asteroid Donaldjohanson
- APOD: 2025 February 12 Á Asteroid Bennu Holds the Building Blocks of Life