NASA's Stardust spacecraft flew through the coma of comet Wild 2 in January 2004, capturing dust grains in ultra-light aerogel, and its capsule landed in the Utah desert on 15 January 2006. Analysis revealed minerals formed at high temperatures near the young Sun, showing material was mixed widely across the early solar system.
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NASA's Stardust spacecraft flew through the coma of comet Wild 2 in January 2004, capturing dust grains in ultra-light aerogel, and its capsule landed in the Utah desert on 15 January 2006. Analysis revealed minerals formed at high temperatures near the young Sun, showing material was mixed widely across the early solar system.
The year particles collected from a comet were first delivered to Earth.
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Permanent ID limitsregistry.com/limits/LR-FIRST-COMET-SAMPLE-RETURN
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Limits Registry. LR-FIRST-COMET-SAMPLE-RETURN. First comet sample returned to Earth. 2026.