[Photo credit: Keck Institute for Space Studies]
Professor Shogo Tachibana, a professor of cosmochemistry at the University of Tokyo’s Department of Earth and Planetary Science, will deliver a lecture examining samples retrieved from asteroids on Tuesday, Feb. 25, at Caltech’s Cahill Hameetman Auditorium.
He will compare findings from Japanese missions with samples recently collected from asteroid Bennu by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s OSIRIS-REx mission.
These small celestial bodies are believed to preserve crucial records of our Solar System’s origin and early evolution, providing vital clues to planetary formation.
Tachibana, who led the development of Hayabusa2’s sampler system, serves as a professor at the UTokyo Organization for Planetary and Space Science and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Institute of Space.
His research focuses on investigating dust processes in protoplanetary disks and studying organic matter formation from the Sun’s parent molecular cloud through laboratory experiments.
The lecture, part of the prestigious Keck Institute for Space Studies Lecture Series, will explore the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s successful Hayabusa missions to Itokawa and Ryugu asteroids.
The first Hayabusa mission returned samples from S-type asteroid Itokawa in 2010, followed by Hayabusa2’s collection of material from C-type asteroid Ryugu in 2020.
Prof. Tachibana will also share his expectations for future sample return missions, offering insights into upcoming space exploration endeavors.
The event begins with a reception at 4:30 p.m., followed by the main lecture at 5 p.m.
For more information, contact Antonio Soriano at (626) 395-3966 or asoriano@caltech.edu.
