Near Spacecraft

Near Spacecraft Closing In On Eros Asteroid The NEAR (Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous) spacecraft is about to make interplanetary history. On Jan. 10, 1999, after traveling more than a billion and a half miles, it will reach asteroid 433 Eros and embark on the first close-up and comprehensive study of an asteroid. Never before has any small body been orbited by a spacecraft, but the additional task of maneuvering a spacecraft within 9 miles (15 kilometers) of the asteroid's surface …

…the Applied Physics Laboratory, and commands from the Laboratory's Mission Operations Center back to the spacecraft. Dr. Joseph Veverka of Cornell University, Science Team Leader for the mission, says the challenges that face the NEAR mission are significant. The NEAR spacecraft was launched Feb. 17, 1996. Its flyby of asteroid Mathilde on June 27, 1997, provided the program's first science return. By mission's end, Feb. 6, 2000, scientists expect to know much more about Eros and thus near-Earth asteroids in general.