Hayabusa2 loses final ion engine, JAXA plans cross-operation to keep mission alive
Japan's Hayabusa2 probe experienced a failure in its last functional ion engine, prompting JAXA to use a cross-operation workaround to continue its extended asteroid mission.
In mid-August, the Hayabusa2 space probe suffered a breakdown in its last operational ion engine, according to a JAXA official. Each of the craft's four ion engines normally requires both its own ion source and a neutralizer to function, and the loss leaves only three complete units. To preserve the mission, JAXA plans to implement a "cross operation" strategy, using the ion source from one engine together with the neutralizer of another, a method that successfully rescued the original Hayabusa probe.
The operations team has already tested the cross-circuit and verified its performance. Hayabusa2, launched in December 2014, returned 5.4 grams of Ryugu samples to Earth in 2020 and is now on an extended journey toward asteroid 1998 KY26, scheduled for 2031. The agency will assess whether the spacecraft can still achieve that goal despite the engine issue, especially after signs of wear appeared during a July flyby of asteroid Torifune.
Why it matters
The probe's engine failure threatens a rare multi-year asteroid mission, affecting scientific returns on primitive solar-system bodies.
In this story
