Incredible images from Ryugu asteroid after Hayabusa2 Japanese robots land in world first
The diminutive rovers are part of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Hayabusa2 asteroid sampling mission - and beamed back these stunning pictures from Ryugu's surface
A PAIR of tiny Japanese robots have landed on a moving asteroid for the first time and sent back incredible pictures.
The hopping rovers are part of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Hayabusa2 asteroid sampling mission - and beamed back these stunning pictures from Ryugu's surface.
They touched down early on Friday morning, but JAXA waited until Saturday night before announcing that both rovers made it to the space rock's surface.
They are designed to hop along the asteroid's surface as they collect photos, samples, and data from its surface.
They are forced to get around by hopping as Ryugu's gravity is so weak that rolling won't work.
One picture is blurred as it was taken mid-jump.
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The rovers were dropped onto the surface by Hayabusa 2 - which in October will attempt a landing to collect samples and take them back to Earth.
Scientists have been working to find a suitable landing space on the asteroid's rough surface since the orbiter arrived.
It will also release a lander called Mascot and a large rover called Minerva-II-2 next year.
It was launched in 2014 and is due to return to Earth by 2020.
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