image: Space weathering is the interaction between the surface of airless bodies and energetic particles, and modifies spectra of the airless bodies. A particle (lower right inset) returned from asteroid Itokawa has a double-layered rim containing Fe-rich nanoparticles (bright spots in this figure). Spectral modification is thought to be due to these Fe-rich nanoparticles on the basis of lunar samples studies. This image relates to an article that appeared in the Aug. 26, 2011, issue of Science, published by AAAS. The study, by Dr. Takakki Noguchi of Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan, and colleagues was titled, "Incipient Space Weathering Observed on the Surface of Itokawa Dust Particles." view more
Credit: Image © Science/AAAS