As seen on NBC News Cosmic Log Posted 12/15/12 By Alan Boyle
China's Chang'e-2 probe took multiple images of the asteroid Toutatis during its Dec. 13 flyby.
As seen on NBC News Cosmic Log Posted 12/15/12 By Alan Boyle
China's Chang'e-2 probe took multiple images of the asteroid Toutatis during its Dec. 13 flyby.
China's official news agency is reporting that the country's Chang'e 2 deep-space probe made an amazing flyby of the asteroid Toutatis this week, snapping a series of pictures as it passed just 2 miles away. The achievement signals China's entry into yet another exclusive space club.
Only four of the world's space efforts have managed close encounters with asteroids: NASA (with NEAR Shoemaker and Dawn, for example), the European Space Agency (with Rosetta), Japan (with Hayabusa) — and now China with Toutatis.
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