This encounter was used primarily as an engineering test of the spacecraft and ground operations in preparation for the encounter with comet Wild 2 in 2003. In April 2014, NASA reported they had recovered seven particles of interstellar dust from the aerogel. On July 9, 2020, astronaut Robert Behnken captured an image of comet NEOWISE from the International Space Station. On 14 August 2014, scientists announced the identification of possible interstellar dust particles from the Stardust capsule returned to Earth in 2006. NASA History Program Office, 2018. It sent its last transmission at 12:33 UT the same day, ending an 11-year mission.

Establish the physical processes of dust emission from the nucleus, their propagation to form a coma, and the behavior of dust jets. Back in space, Stardust was placed into hibernation until it was funded for an extended mission called the New Exploration of Tempel 1 (NExT).

[6] The original encounter distance was planned to be 150 km (93 mi), but this was changed after a safety review board increased the closest approach distance to minimize the potential for catastrophic dust collisions. [49], In April 2011, scientists from the University of Arizona discovered evidence for the presence of liquid water in comet Wild 2. Stardust during launch with a Delta II launch vehicle. In planning the mission, it was expected that most of the original material from which the comet formed would still be preserved. Comets are ancient bodies of frozen ice and dust that formed beyond the orbit of the most distant planet. [1]:5, The primary science objectives of the mission included:[6], The spacecraft was designed, built and operated by Lockheed Martin Astronautics as a Discovery-class mission in Denver, Colorado. The solar array design was derived primarily from the Small Spacecraft Technology Initiative (SSTI) spacecraft development guidelines. Red/green stereo anaglyph of Comet Wild 2. Stardust carried out a final engine burn March 24, 2011, exhausting all of its propellant. Most cosmic dust particles measure between a few molecules and 0.1 mm (100 micrometers). A single nickel–hydrogen (NiH2) battery was also included to provide the spacecraft with power when the solar arrays received too little sunlight.

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