Japanese spacecraft may have dust from asteroid

Material found in the Hayabusa spacecraft's sample collection compartments could offer insight into the creation and makeup of the solar system.

The capsule landed successfully in the Australian Outback last month after a seven-year, 4-billion mile (6-billion kilometer) journey despite a series of technical glitches that raised worries that the mission could fail.

Project chief Junichiro Kawaguchi said Wednesday a small number of mostly microscopic particles were found and dust from the asteroid was likely among them. But he said it was also suspected that contaminants from Earth may have been mixed in.

"We need to determine their origin," he said, adding that could take months.

Experts from NASA and Australia are also involved in the project.

Hayabusa, launched in 2003, reached an asteroid called Itokawa in 2005. After taking photos from all angles of the 1,640-foot (500-meter) -long asteroid, Hayabusa landed on it twice in November 2005. The spacecraft then limped home after developing a fuel leak and losing contact with Earth for seven weeks.

It was the first spacecraft ever to successfully land on an asteroid and then return home; Kazinform cites China Daily.

See www.chinadaily.com.cn for full version