Don Quijote (spacecraft) - Overview

Overview

The mission will consist of two spacecraft that will execute a series of maneuvers around a small, 500-metre (1,600-foot) asteroid.

• The first spacecraft, Sancho, will arrive at the asteroid and orbit it for several months, studying it. The orbiter will use a single xenon ion engine.
• After a few months, the second spacecraft, Hidalgo, will hurtle toward the asteroid on a collision course. It will sleep for most of the trip and then steer itself using optical sensors with an accuracy of 50 meters. Sancho will retreat to a safe distance while Hidalgo will hit the asteroid at around 10 km/s.
• Sancho will then return to its close orbit and see how much the asteroid's shape, internal structure, orbit and rotation have been affected by the impact.
• Sancho will release the Autonomous Surface Package, a Lander which will free-fall toward the asteroid for 2 hours before landing. This package will be directed towards the interior of the impact crater where it will investigate properties of the surface.