NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

JSC2008-E-105831 (27 Aug. 2008) --- Karen McNamara works with the Stardust sample return capsule in the Space-Exposed Hardware Lab at NASA's Johnson Space Center prior to transfer on Sept. 4 to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The Stardust spacecraft returned the world's first samples from a known comet. During the seven-year journey in space, a tennis racket-like, aerogel-lined collector was extended to capture the particles as the spacecraft flew within 150 miles of comet Wild 2 in January 2004. The return capsule landed Jan. 15, 2006, in Utah, and two days later it was transported to JSC.

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JSC2008-E-105827 (27 Aug. 2008) --- Jim Harris (left) and Ron Seders, with Lockheed Martin, prepare the Stardust sample return capsule in the Space-Exposed Hardware Lab at NASA's Johnson Space Center for transfer on Sept. 4 to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The Stardust spacecraft returned the world's first samples from a known comet. During the seven-year journey in space, a tennis racket-like, aerogel-lined collector was extended to capture the particles as the spacecraft flew within 150 miles of comet Wild 2 in January 2004. The return capsule landed Jan. 15, 2006, in Utah, and two days later it was transported to JSC.


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JSC2008-E-105826 (27 Aug. 2008) --- Jim Harris (left) and Ron Seders, with Lockheed Martin, prepare the Stardust sample return capsule in the Space-Exposed Hardware Lab at NASA's Johnson Space Center for transfer on Sept. 4 to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The Stardust spacecraft returned the world's first samples from a known comet. During the seven-year journey in space, a tennis racket-like, aerogel-lined collector was extended to capture the particles as the spacecraft flew within 150 miles of comet Wild 2 in January 2004. The return capsule landed Jan. 15, 2006, in Utah, and two days later it was transported to JSC.