JAXA now reporting asteroid probe did make landing

According to JAXA, the official Japanese space agency, reports that the Hayubasa asteroid probe had failed to touch down were erroneous. Re-examination of data seems to indcate that the landing (and apparently, lift-off) had occurred, but the probe had failed to collect samples:

Japan's space agency said Wednesday its spacecraft had successfully touched down on an asteroid 180 million miles from Earth despite an earlier announcement that it had failed.

On Sunday, JAXA officials had said the Hayabusa probe, on a mission to land on the asteroid named Itokawa, collect material, then bring it back to Earth, failed to touch down after maneuvering within yards of the surface.

However, the agency said Wednesday that data confirmed that Hayabusa had landed on the surface Sunday for a half-hour, although it failed to collect material.

JAXA officials had said earlier that Hayabusa dropped a small object as a touchdown target from 130 feet above the asteroid and then descended to 56 feet from the surface, at which point ground control lost contact with the probe for about three hours.

But after analyzing data, the agency said the probe landed on the asteroid within about 99 feet of the initial landing target.

The agency officials were still analyzing the data and will decide by Thursday whether to conduct a second landing attempt Friday, according to Seiji Koyama, a spokesman for the space agency.

Reading between the lines of these reports, it looks like the landing was accomplished, but direct communication with the probe was, or has been, lost. It apparently touched down, based on analysis of other types of data transfer, but did not complete the primary mission of collecting samples.

It must be assumed that the lander was then able to lift off again, since a second landing, presumably to again attempt to collect samples, is being considered.

It is of course the collection of samples and their return to earth that is the key to this mission. In 2001 NASA landed a probe on an asteroid and collected data transmissions, but the probe did not collect samples or return to earth.

[also posted at BabbleFest]