Don Quijote is a proposed space probe under consideration by the European Space Agency, which would study the effects of impacting a spacecraft into an asteroid. The mission is intended to test whether a spacecraft could successfully deflect an asteroid on a collision course with Earth. The orbiter is being designed to last for seven years. A space probe is an unmanned space mission in which a spacecraft leaves Earths orbit. ... The European Space Agency (ESA), established in 1975, is an inter-governmental organization dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 17 member states. ... Asteroid, large and rocky planet , and planetoid are synonyms, and are used to indicate a diverse group of small celestial bodies that drift in the solar system in orbit around the Sun. ... Artists impression of a major impact event. ... Earth (IPA: , often referred to as the Earth, Terra, or Planet Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth largest. ...

The mission is still in the planning stages with a launch expected in 2011 [1].

Overview

The mission will consist of two spacecraft that will execute a series of manoeuvres 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. Sancho will retreat to a safe distance while Hidalgo will impact the asteroid at around 10 km/s. The impactor will sleep for most of the trip and then steer itself using optical sensors with an accuracy of 50 meters.
• 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. [2]
• Sancho will release the Autonomous Surface Package which will free-fall toward the asteroid for 2 hours before landing. This package will be directed towards the interior of the impact crater were it will investigate properties of the surface.

General Name, Symbol, Number xenon, Xe, 54 Chemical series noble gases Group, Period, Block 18, 5, p Appearance colorless Atomic mass 131. ... An ion engine test An ion thruster is a type of spacecraft propulsion that uses beams of ions for propulsion. ...

Target

The ESA has identified two near-Earth asteroids as possible targets: 2002 AT₄ and (10302) 1989 ML. A decision will be made in 2007. Neither asteroid represents a threat to Earth.[3] Near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) are asteroids whose orbits are close to Earths orbit. ... 2002 AT4 is an as yet unnamed and un-numbered near-Earth asteroid. ... (10302) 1989 ML is an as yet unnamed near-Earth asteroid. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Names

The mission is named after Don Quixote, the fictional Spanish knight who attempted to battle a windmill, thinking it to be a giant. Like the Don, the Hidalgo spacecraft (named after the Spanish word for 'knight') will 'attack' an object much larger than itself, but hopefully with more impressive results. 'Sancho' is named after Sancho Panza, the Don's squire, who preferred to stay back and watch from a safe distance, which is the role assigned to that probe. Don Quixote de la Mancha (now usually spelled Don Quijote by Spanish-speakers; Don Quixote is an archaic spelling) (IPA: ) or El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha (The Ingenious Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha) is a novel by the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. ... The silver Anglia knight, commissioned as a trophy in 1850, intended to represent the Black Prince. ... Spanish Windmills at La Mancha A windmill is an engine powered by the wind to produce energy, often contained in a large building as in traditional post mills, smock mills and tower mills. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

External links

• ESA: NEO Space Mission Preparation (overview of the mission)
• ESA News: ESA selects targets for asteroid-deflecting mission