Japanese spacecraft 'bombs' asteroid in scientific mission theguardian.com

A Japanese spacecraft has “bombed” a speeding asteroid 187m miles (300m km) from Earth in an attempt to retrieve material that could offer scientists new clues about the origins of life on the planet. The Hayabusa 2 probe released the device – called a small carry-on impact – on Friday as it hovered 500 metres above the asteroid Ryugu, according to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa). The cone-shaped impactor, fitted with a copper explosive the size of a baseball, was programmed to detonate 40 minutes after it was released, gouging a crater into the asteroid’s surface.