NEAR Shoemaker

NEAR Shoemaker was a NASA spacecraft that was launched on February 17, 1996, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, United States, with the primary goal of studying the asteroid 433 Eros. The spacecraft was named after Eugene Shoemaker, a renowned planetary scientist who had made significant contributions to the field of asteroid research, including the discovery of the Sutter's Mill meteorite with his wife Carolyn Shoemaker and David Levy. The mission was a collaboration between NASA, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, and other institutions, including the University of Arizona and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The spacecraft was designed and built by NASA and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, with significant contributions from Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

Introduction

The NEAR Shoemaker mission was a landmark project in the field of asteroid research, marking the first time a spacecraft had orbited and landed on an asteroid. The mission built upon the success of previous asteroid flyby missions, such as the Galileo spacecraft's encounter with 951 Gaspra and 243 Ida, and paved the way for future missions like Dawn and OSIRIS-REx. The NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a Delta II rocket, with a launch window that coincided with the Asteroid Belt's alignment with Earth and the Sun. The mission was managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with significant contributions from the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.

Spacecraft Design and Instruments

The NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft was designed to be a robust and versatile platform, capable of withstanding the harsh conditions of space and the asteroid environment. The spacecraft was equipped with a range of instruments, including a multispectral imager developed by Brown University and the University of Tennessee, a laser rangefinder built by MIT and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, and a magnetometer designed by the University of California, Los Angeles and the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. The spacecraft also carried a radio science experiment, which used the Deep Space Network to study the asteroid's gravity field and composition, in collaboration with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory and the Arecibo Observatory. The spacecraft's power source was a solar panel array, which provided energy for the spacecraft's systems and instruments, including the X-ray/gamma-ray spectrometer developed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and the University of Chicago.

Mission Overview

The NEAR Shoemaker mission consisted of several phases, including launch, cruise phase, orbit phase, and landing phase. The spacecraft was launched on February 17, 1996, and entered into a cruise phase that lasted for over a year, during which it flew by the Moon and the asteroid 253 Mathilde. The spacecraft then entered into orbit around 433 Eros on February 14, 2000, and began a comprehensive study of the asteroid's composition, geology, and magnetic field, in collaboration with the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission and the Japanese Space Agency's Hayabusa mission. The spacecraft's orbit phase lasted for over a year, during which it collected a vast amount of data and images of the asteroid. The spacecraft then entered into a landing phase, which culminated in a successful touchdown on the asteroid's surface on February 12, 2001, with the support of the NASA's Ames Research Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Scientific Discoveries

The NEAR Shoemaker mission made several significant scientific discoveries, including the determination of 433 Eros's shape, size, and composition, in collaboration with the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences. The spacecraft's instruments revealed that the asteroid is a S-type asteroid, composed primarily of silicate rocks and metallic minerals, with a surface that is heavily cratered and grooved. The spacecraft also discovered that 433 Eros has a weak magnetic field, which is likely the result of the asteroid's iron-rich composition, as studied by the University of California, Los Angeles and the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. The mission also provided valuable insights into the asteroid's geology and evolution, including the discovery of a large crater on the asteroid's surface, which is thought to have been formed by a massive impact event, as analyzed by the NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission.

Legacy and Impact

The NEAR Shoemaker mission has had a lasting impact on the field of asteroid research, paving the way for future missions like Dawn and OSIRIS-REx, which are being conducted by NASA in collaboration with the European Space Agency, the Canadian Space Agency, and the Japanese Space Agency. The mission's discoveries have also contributed to a greater understanding of the solar system's formation and evolution, including the role of asteroids in the delivery of water and organic compounds to Earth, as studied by the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences. The mission's legacy continues to inspire new generations of scientists and engineers, including those working on the European Space Agency's Gaia mission and the NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon by 2024 and establish a sustainable presence on the lunar surface, with the support of the NASA's Johnson Space Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The NEAR Shoemaker mission has also been recognized with several awards, including the National Academy of Engineering's Draper Prize and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics' Space Exploration Award, in collaboration with the International Astronautical Federation and the Committee on Space Research.

Category:Asteroid missions