JAXA's Hayabusa2 flies past asteroid Torifune in deflection test
Hayabusa2, Japan's space explorer from JAXA, zipped past the near-Earth asteroid Torifune on Sunday.
The mission was all about testing how we could steer spacecraft to nudge dangerous asteroids away from Earth.
Hayabusa2 performed a flyby that scientists hope came within 800 meters of Torifune, flying at over 18,000km per hour, pretty wild!
Hayabusa2 scans aid planetary defense
Instead of crashing into Torifune, Hayabusa2 scanned its surface for details like texture and temperature, stuff that's super useful for planetary defense planning.
JAXA officials were thrilled with the accuracy; Yuya Mimasu said it was like hitting a coin from across Japan.
And after already collecting samples from another asteroid (Ryugu), Hayabusa2 is now heading toward its next target in 2031.
As ESA scientist Patrick Michel put it, these missions help us prep for any future threats from space.