The HAYABUSA2 spacecraft is on its way to perform an unprecedented investigation of asteroid 1999 JU3. Among the instruments on board are the optical navigation cameras (ONC) the small carry-on…

This is a $570,400 grant for research awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to The Johns Hopkins University. The purpose of this grant is to support the Hayabusa2 mission's investigation of asteroid 1999 JU3. Specifically, the research will:

1. Create global shape and topography models of the asteroid using stereo-photo-clinometry to aid mission planning, data analysis, and site selection for the Small Carry-on Impactor (SCI) experiment.

2. Combine the shape model with images from the Optical Navigation Cameras (ONC) and Deployable Camera 3 (DCAM3) to help the Hayabusa2 team locate the SCI impact site and analyze the impact's evolution and effects.

3. Provide the Hayabusa2 team with data products including the shape model, high-resolution digital elevation models, and geophysical maps to support the mission's objectives.

This grant does not have a set-aside designation. The Johns Hopkins University, a private research university, is the prime contractor. The grant runs from October 2016 through October 2025, supporting NASA's planetary science and exploration goals.

The HAYABUSA2 spacecraft is on its way to perform an unprecedented investigation of asteroid 1999 JU3. Among the instruments on board are the optical navigation cameras (ONC) the small carry-on imapctor (SCI), and the deployable camera 3 (DCAM3). The impact of the SCI is a planetary-scale impact experiment, from which much can be learned about the properties of the target asteroid and about the impact cratering process itself. However, in order to understand the impact and its consequences, IT is critical first to understand the shape of 1999 JU3 and its surface geology. This investigation will address five broad science and mission questions: (1) contribute to the HAYABUSA2 team s characterization and selection of sites for the SCI impact, landed element deployments, and sampling touchdowns; (2) help the HAYABUSA2 team to locate the site of the SCI impact crater; (3) assess the outcome of the SCI impact event through comparison of pre- and post-impact images and local, high-resolution digital elevation models (dems); (4) use the SCI impact event to investigate the properties of 1999 JU3; (5) compare the observations of this planetary-scale impact experiment to our current knowledge of the impact cratering process. I propose to address these objectives while aiding mission planning, data archiving, and science analyses to be performed by the HAYABUSA2 team through four proposed main tasks: (1) create global shape and topography models of 1999 JU3 using stereo-photo-clinometry (SPC). As a part of this process, images will be registered to the shape model. Calculate elevation, slope, and gravitational potential, and gravitational acceleration from the models and produce global geophysical maps.; (2) combine the task 1 SPC models and geophysical maps with ONC (and later DCAM3) images using the small body mapping tool (sbmt). Calculate ONC image backplanes. (3) use the shape model, knowledge of local slope, ONC images, and the sbmt to help the HAYABUSA2 team to select candidate sites for the SCI impact, landed elements, and sampling touchdowns. Construct high-resolution dems and geophysical maps of these sites to assess suitability for surface-contact events. (4) use ONC and DCAM3 images, the shape model, and the sbmt to predict the impact site location. Analyze DCAM3 images to quantify the evolution of the ejecta curtain. Compare high-resolution reconnaissance images and high-resolution dems of the pre- and post-impact surface to interpret the results of the cratering event in order to gain insight into the properties of 1999 JU3 and the impact cratering process. I will help the HAYABUSA2 team to generate and deliver several data products: (1) a SPC shape and topography models of 1999 JU3; (2) high-resolution dems of the impact site; (3) geophysical maps of 1999 JU3; (4) image registration information and pointing updates for ONC and DCAM3; (5) small body mapping tool HAYABUSA2-specific capabilities.