Editing NEAR Shoemaker (section)

===Summary===
The mission's primary goal was to study the near-Earth asteroid [[433 Eros]] from orbit for approximately one year. Eros is an [[S-type asteroid]] approximately 13 × 13 × 33&nbsp;km in size, the second largest near-Earth asteroid. Initially, the orbit was circular with a radius of 200&nbsp;km. The orbit radius was brought down in stages to a 50 × 50&nbsp;km orbit on April 30, 2000, and decreased to 35 × 35&nbsp;km on July 14, 2000. The orbit was raised over succeeding months to a 200 × 200&nbsp;km orbit and then slowly decreased and altered to a 35 × 35&nbsp;km retrograde orbit on December 13, 2000. The mission ended with a touchdown in Eros's "saddle" region on February 12, 2001.

Some scientists claim that the mission's ultimate goal was to link Eros, an asteroidal body, to meteorites recovered on Earth. With sufficient data on chemical composition, a causal link could be established between Eros and other S-type asteroids, and those meteorites believed to be pieces of S-type asteroids (perhaps Eros itself). Once this connection is established, meteorite material can be studied with large, complex, and evolving equipment, and the results can be extrapolated to bodies in space. ''NEAR'' did not prove or disprove this link to the satisfaction of scientists.<!-- However, it is undeniable that ''NEAR'' data advanced the field of asteroidal studies tremendously.{{citation needed|date=August 2014}} Please do not uncomment this without finding a reference. -->

Between December 1999 and February 2001, ''NEAR'' used its gamma-ray spectrometer to detect [[gamma-ray bursts]] as part of the [[InterPlanetary Network]].<ref name=Trombka />