Updated at 1:13 p.m.
ET
Video of the Crash
DUGWAY PROVING GROUND, UTAH
-- A NASA spacecraft spun out of control and crashed into the Utah desert this
morning, putting a disastrous end to a years-long mission to bring back samples
of the Sun.
The probe was supposed to
deploy a parachute and be snagged by a helicopter for safe recovery.
The capsule, carrying tiny
particles from the solar wind that scientists were eager to study for the first
time, was half buried in the sandy surface and "appeared to be intact,"
said a NASA mission controller.
Closer inspection showed the flying-saucer-shaped
ship had cracked in two, however.
100 mph impact
Genesis and its solar cargo
slammed into the ground at about 100 mph, said Chris Jones, a spokesperson for
NASA. The space agency did not immediately provide any detail on the expected
condition of the probe's contents, but scientists are optimistic there will
be some particles to recover.
"We've lost something,"
said Roger Wiens, science team flight payload leader from Los Alamos National
Laboratory. "Now we'll have to analyze the pieces."
Since its launch in August
2001, the $264 million Genesis mission flew to a point just under one million
miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth. The spacecraft deployed collectors
for 850 days to "soak up the Sun" -- entrapping particles carried
into space by a constantly streaming "solar
wind," for return to Earth.
Under blue sky and nearly
cloudless conditions here, a mini-squadron of three helicopters took off at
about 11:25 a.m. ET, heading to 10,000 feet to await the arrival of the descending
capsule.
All appeared to be going
well.
Out of control
When the helicopters lifted
off, Genesis was above the atmosphere, roughly halfway between the United States
and Hawaii, screaming toward the planet.
A few minutes before Noon
ET powerful radar and visual instruments here at the Test and Training Range
spotted the Genesis capsule sliding through the atmosphere over the western
part of the country. The probe was spinning 15 times a minute, looking like
an out-of-control garbage can or some space boulder as it flew in at high speed.
"I just had a big pit in
my stomach," Wiens said of watching Genesis plummet toward the ground.
Live video taken from the
surface followed the probe all the way down, while NASA officials noted that
the parachute had not opened, as planned.
The helicopter crews, including
a Hollywood stunt pilot, were to spot the capsule and latch onto it with a long
hook. Instead, they landed near the crash site to inspect the damage. But NASA
engineers feared the explosive for the parachute might still be alive and ready
to fire, so the crews were advised to keep a safe distance.
"That presents a safety
hazard to recovery crews," Jones said.
Hopes dashed?
Scientists hoped the solar
samples, considered among the most primordial bits of the solar system available,
would help them unravel
mysteries surrounding the formation of the nine planets and the central
star they orbit.
Being the first U.S. sample-return
mission since Apollo 17 moonwalkers brought back lunar material in 1972, Genesis
was to be a trailblazer for a similar effort, the NASA Stardust
mission. Stardust is slated to make a Utah parachute landing on January 15,
2006.
A slogan spotted on one
of the mission control computers at the Utah ground facility this morning proved
prophetic. It read, "Genesis: Utah or Bust."
Editor's Note: SPACE.com's
Robert Roy Britt and the Associated Press contributed to this story.
Genesis Capsule Crash Video
Shows the final moments of the Genesis sample-return capsule spinning out
of control and crashing into Earth on Sept. 8, 2004.
Credit: NASA TV |
 A
member of the Genesis Sample Return team, shown in this image taken from
video, looks at the capsule after it fell to Earth without deploying its
parachute Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2004. Click
to enlarge
Credit: AP Photo/NASA/JPL. |
 Spectators
and media watch the Genesis Sample Return capsule fall to earth on television
screens from Dugway Proving Ground, Utah. Click
to enlarge
Credit: AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac. |
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