On February 17, 1996, the NEAR Shoemaker (Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous) spacecraft was launched for the purpose of studying asteroids and other Near Earth Objects up close.
It was the first of NASA’s Discovery Program craft to be launched. The craft was built and managed by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory for the purpose of conducting a close survey of Asteroid 433 Eros.
On the way to Eros, NEAR flew past 253 Mathilde on June 26 and 27, 1997, recording images of the asteroid’s cratered surface. In all, NEAR transmitted over 500 color and high resolution images of the asteroid at varying distances, providing science with a wealth of information to study on 253 Mathilde.
After passing Earth on January 23, 1998, NEAR transmitted many interesting images of Earth and the Moon while in transit to Eros.
NEAR reached Eros on February 12, 2001 and orbited the asteroid for over year, transmitting data and images back to Earth. On February 12, 2001, NEAR began its descent onto Eros and continued its data transmissions until February 28, 2001, when it fell silent. Further, NEAR also provided assistance to the Interplanetary Gamma Ray Burst Network by locating several gamma ray bursts from its perch on Eros. When the mission was complete, NEAR had sent over 160,000 images of Eros back to Earth and completed the most extensive study of an asteroid in history.
For more information:
This entry also posted in the American Military University Introduction to Astronomy newsgroup.