Here's hoping Hayabusa 2 has fewer problems and is even more successful than it's predecessor. patrick 718 --From the NBC News website-- Japan's Hayabusa 2 Probe Launches Toward Target Asteroid The Japanese Hayabusa 2 probe has begun its long mission to space to bring back a sample of a distant asteroid after a successful launch late Tuesday night (early Wednesday afternoon local time) from Tanegashima Space Center. Its target is an asteroid called 1999 JU3, where it will land and deploy several mobile instruments to break a few pieces off the surface to take home. It's similar to the first Hayabusa mission, which made its rendezvous with the Itokawa asteroid in 2005, 180 million miles from Earth. However, that probe was unable to successfully deploy its lander, though it did bring back to Earth a few specks of material. Hayabusa 2 carries improved landing gadgetry, a more sophisticated lander capsule and several small mobile rover-like devices — as well as an explosive charge designed to make a crater and expose lower layers of the asteroid's surface. An archived live stream of the launch is available on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9TwlwZobc4 (launch is at 01:09:40)