Posted on 09/27/2018 12:59:04 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Two tiny, hopping rovers that landed on asteroid Ryugu last week have beamed back some incredible new views of the asteroid's rocky surface.
The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Hayabusa2 sample-return mission dropped the two nearly identical rovers, named Minerva-II1A and Minerva-II1B, onto the surface of Ryugu on Sept. 21. In a new video from the eyes of Minerva-II1B, you can watch the sun move across the sky as its glaring sunlight reflects off the shiny rocks that cover Ryugu's surface.
"Please take a moment to enjoy 'standing' on this new world," JAXA officials said in a statement released today (Sept. 27). The video was shot over the course of 1 hour and 14 minutes beginning on Sept. 22 at 9:34 p.m. EDT (0134 GMT on Sept. 23).
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
Very interesting. Thanks.
That is sci-fi as all get out!
And it’s real!
Super cool. Thanks!
CGI
They could be in Craters of the Moon, Idaho with dramatic lighting for all I can tell.
For later.
L
Go-pro in a terrarium lined with coals shards. And a flashlight shining through the glass
Holy hopping rovers, Batman!
Directed by JJ Abrams?
Just like in Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)
It’s a bunch of rocks.
The Universe is a bunch of rocks.
If you need this explained, then this really is a subject that wouldn’t interest you, because most of the Universe is mundane stuff to the uninterested.
What is the gravitational pull of this big rock? Do the robots stick to it by gravity or mechanically?
Practically no gravity at all.
Hmmm... Clearly the hoppers didn’t land on the putting green...
1/80,000 th of Earth gravity
I would weigh about one twentieth of an ounce
Apparently they stick by gravity, weak as it is:
“They can hop horizontal distances of up to 50 feet (15 meters), and because Ryugu’s gravity is so weak, it can take them up to 15 minutes to land.”
No it isn't.
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