Japan lands Hayabusa-2 spacecraft on Ryugu asteroid in successful mission

Before the mission was given the green light to go earlier today, Hayabusa-2 hovered over the space rock at a distance of about 12.5 miles (20km).

The spacecraft then spent the next few hours, gradually approaching and accelerating towards Ryugu.

Unfortunately, due to its position it will be impossible for Hayabusa-2 to beam images back to JAXA on Earth.

The spacecraft is now orbiting around 12.5 miles (20km) above the asteroid