Top Stories
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 Delta 2 rocket launch - A Delta 2 rocket lifts off with an international oceanography satellite.
ESA's lifting body - Europe's re-entry demonstrator should be approved soon for blastoff in late 2013.
Crew arrives at ISS - Next space station crew docks to orbiting complex in Soyuz capsule.
Voyager finds bubbles - The Voyager spacecraft has discovered signs of giant magnetic bubbles at the solar system's outer edge.
Rosetta goes to sleep - ESA's Rosetta comet-chasing spacecraft goes into hibernation.
Shuttle photo op - Spectacular photos of shuttle Endeavour docked to the space station.
Sea Launch update - Two missions are planned this year by Sea Launch from the Pacific Ocean and Kazakhstan.
Fresh crew launched - Reinforcements for the space station crew blast off on a Soyuz rocket.
Picking a destination - NASA will decide this summer where its next Mars rover will land.
Spirit's last images - A collection of the final photos returned from NASA's Spirit rover on Mars.
Atlantis on deck - Beautiful photos of shuttle Atlantis at sunrise on the launch pad.
Endeavour home - Concluding a 16-day mission, Endeavour returns to Earth for the final time.
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Hayabusa completes fiery return to Earth
The first two photos were captured by JAXA officials on the ground in Australia showing the trail of fire and plasma left behind the Hayabusa mothership and re-entry capsule. The spacecraft entered the atmosphere at more than 27,000 mph and withstood temperatures of nearly 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
The final four images were taken from a video captured aboard a NASA DC-8 airplane observing Hayabusa's re-entry over Australia. The Hayabusa spacecraft broke apart during the return as expected, but the mission's sample return capsule survived the re-entry and landed at the Woomera Prohibited Area in South Australia.
Hayabusa was returning on the first round-trip voyage to the surface of an asteroid, and the capsule could be carrying samples.
Photo credit: JAXA Ground Observation System
Photo credit: JAXA Ground Observation System
Photo credit: NASA/SETI Institute/University of North Dakota/Spaceflight Now
Photo credit: NASA/SETI Institute/University of North Dakota/Spaceflight Now
Photo credit: NASA/SETI Institute/University of North Dakota/Spaceflight Now
Photo credit: NASA/SETI Institute/University of North Dakota/Spaceflight Now
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