“Japan’s space agency conducted a successful test this week of its ‘space cannon,’ expected to depart on a mission to shoot an asteroid in 2014, as part of the Hayabusa 2 mission.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch space probe Hayabusa 2 to an asteroid next year, in hopes of sampling a class of asteroids expected to be rich in organic materials. The mission is expected to help astronomers better understand the relationship between asteroid organic materials and those found on Earth, as well as to burnish Japan’s reputation as a top space explorer.”
Source:Japan tests asteroid-blasting ‘space cannon’ – CSMonitor.com
