Japan's space probe Hayabusa2 has completed a flyby observation of an asteroid as it heads for its next destination in space. The probe delivered a capsule of samples to Earth from another asteroid six years ago.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, says Hayabusa2 made the flyby of the Torifune asteroid without incident at around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, Japan time, as scheduled. The agency said data sent by the probe confirmed that the mission had been completed.

The flyby is part of the Hayabusa2 Extended Mission that began in 2020 after the spacecraft delivered a capsule containing sand and other samples collected from the Ryugu asteroid. The probe is expected to arrive at its final target asteroid in 2031.

In a livestream by JAXA, team members in the control room burst into applause after the confirmation.

During the flyby, Hayabusa2 was expected to approach as close as 800 meters from the center of Torifune and to capture images of the asteroid while traveling at a relative speed of 5 kilometers per second.

JAXA will explain the results of the operation in detail at a news conference on Monday. If the probe successfully captured images of Torifune, the agency plans to release them on Monday or later.

The agency hopes to acquire the technology to control the probe precisely and maneuver it close to asteroids at high speed. The aim is to contribute to "planetary defense" efforts, which involve using probes to alter the trajectory of asteroids that may potentially collide with Earth in the future.