Japanese space agency confirms its probe brought back asteroid dust

BBC : Five years ago Japan’s Hayabusa spacecraft landed on the asteroid Itokawa, extracted a sample, and on 13 June brought the sample to Earth. Whether the capsule actually contained an analyzable sample was in doubt because of communication and other problems during the landing. Now, as the BBC’s Jonathon Amos reports, Japan’s space agency JAXA confirmed that 1500 grains of Itokawa dust were retrieved from the capsule. “The announcement represents a huge triumph for Japan,” writes Amos. “It is the first time samples from an asteroid have been returned to Earth.”