The Hayabusa-1 probe visited the Itokawa asteroid in 2010 and collected soil samples from a space body. As part of the study of soil from Itokawa, scientists wanted to determine its age – it should be similar to the age of the solar system. It turned out that it amounted to 4.64 billion years, and the diameter of the asteroid exceeded 20 km.
In addition, soil analysis will confirm the theory that many individual meteorites and their progenitors from the asteroid class have an absolutely identical composition.
A more detailed analysis of the soil from the asteroid showed the presence of tiny “antennae” consisting of pure iron on its particles. Scientists cannot say exactly the reasons for the appearance of growths – probably, the bombardment of the object by particles of the solar wind led to such a strange soil erosion on an asteroid.
Earlier astronomers from the University of Arizona discovered traces of water in soil samples taken by the Hayabusa-1 apparatus on the Itokawa asteroid.
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