Jakarta –
The United States Space Agency, NASA, has succeeded in revealing the contents contained in samples of the asteroid Bennu. The sample was shown in the auditorium of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Houston.
“The OSIRIS-REx sample is the largest carbon-rich asteroid sample ever sent to Earth and will help scientists investigate the origins of life on our planet for generations to come,” said Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator, as reported on the NASA website, Saturday (14/10/ 2023).
This asteroid rock was obtained by NASA in September 2023 and was taken via the Osiris-Rex space probe mission. It is estimated that the Bennu asteroid sample is around 4.5 billion years old.
Rich in Carbon and Minerals
Research on samples of the asteroid Bennu was carried out for three days by experts from the Natural History Museum (NHM) and five other people in the “Quick Look” team. After examination, the sample contained high levels of carbon and water.
Analysis of the asteroid Bennu was carried out by collecting images from a scanning electron microscope, infrared measurements, X-ray diffraction and chemical element analysis. To generate 3D computer models of the particles, scientists use X-ray computed tomography.
Dr Ashley King, a scientist who is part of the group observing Bennu asteroid samples, said what was contained in the rock was beautiful. This discovery shows that the building blocks for life on Earth are contained in these rocks.
“It’s really beautiful, really beautiful – certainly what we’ve seen so far,” he was quoted as saying BBC.
Scientists think the contents show how the Earth in the past got water in the ocean and some of those important compounds that are now needed by living things.
“We’re trying to figure out who we are, who we are, where we come from. What is our place in this vast universe?” Nelson said.
About the OSIRIS-REx Mission
Nelson said the goal of the OSIRIS-REx mission is to improve human understanding of asteroids that could threaten Earth. In addition, research on these samples can provide an overview of life in outer space.
“The samples have returned to Earth, but there is still a lot of science to come, science that we have never seen before,” he said.
OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA’s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
Watch the Video “NASA Will Announce Update on Asteroid Bennu Samples”
(chicken/gas)
2023-10-17 02:30:34
#NASA #Scientists #Reveal #Elements #Asteroids #Turns
