| Name | Designation | Launched |
| Stardust | 1999-003A | 1999 Feb 7 |
Milestones
| 2000 Feb to May | 1st Interstellar dust collection |
| 2002 Aug to Dec | 2nd Interstellar dust collection |
| 2002 Nov 02 | Flyby Asteroid Anne Frank |
| 2004 Jan 02 | Encounter Comet Wild 2 |
| 2006 Jan 15 | Sample Return to Earth |
The first picture of Comet Wild 2 was obtained 49 days before rendezvous, somewhat earlier than expected. "When I first looked at the picture I didn't believe it," said Mission Navigator, Dr Shyam Bhaskaran. "We were not expecting to observe the comet for at least another two weeks. But there it was, very close to where we thought it would be." The sighting was verified five days later by the second Stardust image of the comet.
A close flyby of a comet is quite dangerous because of the amount of particles emitating from the comet's tail. When ESA'a Giotto probe attempted a close encounter with Halley's Comet, a particle from the comet sent the spacecraft into a spin. Stardust will observe from a 'safe' distance of 300 kilometers from Wild 2, which is 5.4 kilometers across. With a closing velocity between comet and spacecraft six times that of a bullet, there can be little room for error and the early acquisition of the comet is certainly an asset to the Navigation Team.
It is hoped that Stardust will capture samples of material from the comet and from interplanetary space and return them to Earth in January 2006 when it will make a soft-landing at a US Airforce base in Utah.
March 26, 2004
reproduced courtesy of NASA
The Stardust spacecraft remains in excellent condition as its post-encounter trajectory carries it through the solar system's main asteroid belt.
The Stardust team recently released three new images of comet Wild 2. These images depict surface and jet details that have never been seen before.
The Stardust project was presented an award from the Boy Scouts of America San Gabriel Valley Council for the successful Wild 2 encounter and to commemorate the Council's highlighting of Stardust during the National Jamboree. The ceremony was held during a talk by Stardust project manager for the JPL Office of Communication and Education von Karman Lecture Series.
The Alphastro Home Page is http://www.alphastro.com and is operated by Lindoponline
Alphastro.com was registered through Names.co and
I recommend their service to all webmasters. Click the banner for more details.
Should you have any comments about this site, please email the webmaster