Ryugu is a near-Earth object and a potentially hazardous asteroid of the Apollo group. It measures approximately 900 metres (3,000 ft) in diameter and is a dark object of the rare spectral type Cb, with qualities of both a C-type asteroid and a B-type asteroid.

In June 2018, the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 arrived at the asteroid. After making measurements and taking samples, Hayabusa2 left Ryugu for Earth in November 2019 and returned the sample capsule to Earth on 5 December 2020.

The samples showed the presence of organic compounds, such as uracil (one of the four components in RNA) and vitamin B3.

  • nkiru@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    So if a human was standing on the surface in the photo, could you see them? How large would they be against the background rock?

    • Scubus
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      1 year ago

      Depends on how close they are to the camera. As the horizon, a human would be just a little shorter than the top of the frame. Standing directly in front of the camera, youd see up to just below their knees.

      Edit: on second thought, at the horizon you could fit 2 people in frame on top of each other.