By Elizabeth Tasker

Caitlin Caruana from the Australian Space Agency (ASA) has been presented with the JAXA ISAS Award for remarkable achievements and contributions to the Hayabusa2 project. Caruana was tasked with handling a most unusual import when the Hayabusa2 spacecraft returned to Earth to deliver samples from asteroid Ryugu to a spot in the South Australia desert. With a pandemic sweeping across the globe, Caruana had to ensure that the JAXA team could reach the asteroid within a tight time limit. From the ground in Australia, this is her story of helping to bring asteroid Ryugu home to Japan.

Read the full story over on our "Cosmos" blog [Helping to bring an asteroid home - Cosmos (jaxa.jp)]