NEAR spacecraft. Artwork depicting the NEAR spacecraft orbiting Asteroid 433 Eros. NEAR (Near- Earth Asteroid Rendezvous) is the first mission in NASA's Discovery programme of small,low-cost spacecraft. Launched in February 1996,NEAR will first fly by asteroid 253 Mathilde (1997) before entering orbit around 433 Eros in 1999. NEAR will conduct a 10-month survey of the asteroid using visible light cameras,infrared and X-ray spectrometers and a laser altimeter. Discovery missions take less than 3 years to develop,and are limited to $150 million for construction,launch and the first 30 days of operation | |
Licence : | Droits gérés |
Crédit: | Science Photo Library / JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY APPLIED PHYSICS LABORATORY |
Taille de l’image : | 3403 px × 2271 px |
Model Release : | Non requis |
Property Release : | Non requis |
Restrictions : | - |