When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A close-up image of asteroid Ryugu. A new analysis of samples from the space rock hints that ...

This time last year, scientists got their hands on some very rare space rocks — specifically, 5.4 grams of material from the near-Earth asteroid 162173 Ryugu, which was returned to Earth via the ...

Two new studies reveal surprising features of the asteroid Ryugu. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Tiny particles of rock gathered ...

Samples taken from the near-Earth asteroid 162173 Ryugu continue to provide scientists with important insights, this time about the potential beginnings of life on our planet. Hayabusa2 delivered its ...

Panspermia is the hypothesis that life can survive the transfer between planetary bodies as a secondary path for life to get ...

A Japanese sample-return spacecraft just gave its destination asteroid a special close-up. As Hayabusa2 swept to only 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) above the surface of 162173 Ryugu, it spotted boulders, ...

Research could have solved mysteries surrounding the origins of the spinning top-shaped asteroid Ryugu, by suggesting that it is the extinguished remains of a long-dead comet. In 2020 the space ...

Japan's Hayabusa-2 spacecraft, on a mission to asteroid 162173 Ryugu, will swing fantastically close to Earth tonight, passing only 6,300 miles from the surface. You might even see it in a telescope.

WASHINGTON — New up-close images of Bennu have confirmed that the asteroid is shaped like a spinning top. That look, characterized by a raised equatorial ridge, is shared by other similarly sized ...

The Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 returned to Earth in December 2020 bearing soil samples collected from a nearby asteroid, 162173 Ryugu. Those samples were divided between six scientific teams around ...