The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's $300 million Akatsuki ("Dawn") probe fired its small attitude-control thrusters for 20 minutes Sunday evening at 6:51 p.m. EST in a second (and final) attempt to enter Venus orbit. The first attempt was exactly five years ago, on Dec. 6, 2010, but it failed when the probe's main engine conked out during the orbit-insertion burn, sending the spacecraft sailing off into deep space.
However, this time they had a win. Let's do some science!
Image: Akihiro Ikeshita/JAXA
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