Last Updated: Japan Space Agency On Asteroid Probe Findings Officials from Japan's space agency said on Thursday they found particles of different sizes from a sample the country's Hayabusa2 spacecraft brought back from a distant asteroid this month, a mission they praised as a milestone in planetary research. Officials from Japan's space agency said on Thursday they found particles of different sizes from a sample the country's Hayabusa2 spacecraft brought back from a distant asteroid this month, a mission they praised as a milestone in planetary research. Particles from compartment A gathered during the first touchdown were visibly smaller than particles from compartment C which were gathered during the second touchdown. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced earlier this month that they have found more than the anticipated amount of soil and gases inside the capsule.