These are showing us views of another world - a world we've never seen the likes of. |
This is not the finish line. This is just the intermediate pit stop. |
This spacecraft is a comet explorer. It has the tools to do a lot more. |
This thing went like clockwork. To see that thing in one piece on the floor of the desert is very moving. |
We are totally prepared, both for if everything goes perfectly and if the spacecraft acts up a little bit. |
We feel like parents awaiting the return of a child who left us young and innocent, who now returns holding answers to the most profound questions of our solar system. |
We know we can finish our science. |
We sang our spacecraft to sleep today with a melody of digital ones and zeros. Stardust has performed flawlessly these last seven years and 2.88 billion miles, and deserves a rest for a while, like the rest of the team. |
We took a spacecraft and flew it five years. But in these five years, we went back to the origin of time - to the origin of our solar system. |
We've flown through the worst of it and we're still in contact with our spacecraft. |
When everything comes together and works as expected it is very thrilling and very rewarding. |
When we saw that drop chute open, we knew we were home safe. |
You'll see people wearing protective gear. Our concern is (contamination) from us to the particles, not the other way. |