Hayabusa2’s 2031 Landing Plan Faces an Unexpected Asteroid Nightmare

Hayabusa2’s 2031 Landing Plan Faces an Unexpected Asteroid Nightmare

New observations reveal that the asteroid 1998 KY26 is much smaller and spinning much faster than originally thought.

“NASA Says? No—Japan’s Spacecraft Aims for a 5-Minute Day Asteroid!” – Meson Stars

Astronomers have just revealed new details about asteroid 1998 KY26, the target of Japan’s Hayabusa2 extended mission—and it’s a much tougher challenge than expected. New observations with ESO’s Very Large Telescope show that the asteroid is only 11 meters wide—almost three times smaller than previously thought. Even more surprising, it spins once every five minutes, making it one of the fastest rotating asteroids ever measured. This is a big pr…