Asteroid 25143 Itokawa Model

This model of S-type asteroid No. 25143 was displayed at the Virginia Air and Space Center in Hampton to show the landing site of Hayabusa, the Japanese space probe launched in 2000 to collect a sample and return it to Earth.  Hayabusa intercepted Itokawa in 2005, collected material, and landed in Australia in 2010.  The asteroid was named for "Dr. Rocket" Hideo Itokawa, the father of the Japanese space program, and some of the places on Itokawa are named for places in Japan such as Fuchinobe, Kamoi, Miyabaru, Ohsumi, Sagamihara, and Uchinoura.