JAXA confirmed Hayabusa2, JAXA’s asteroid explorer, rendezvoused with Ryugu, the target asteroid.
On June 27, 2018, JAXA operated Hayabusa2 chemical propulsion thrusters for the spacecraft’s orbit control. (Hayabusa2 operation hours: 7:00 a.m. (JST) through 3:00 p.m. (JST), June 27. The thruster operation was pre-programmed in the event sequence earlier on the day and the command was automatically executed.)
The confirmation of the Hayabusa2 rendezvous made at 9:35 a.m. (Japan Standard Time, JST) is based on the following data analyses:
* The thruster operation of Hayabusa2 occurred nominally
* The distance between Hayabusa2 and Ryugu is approximately 20 kilometers
* Hayabusa2 is able to maintain a constant distance to asteroid Ryugu
* The status of Hayabusa2 is normal
From this point, we are planning to conduct exploratory activities in the vicinity of the asteroid, including scientific observation of asteroid Ryugu and surveying the asteroid for sample collection.
