The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has landed further than NASA expected. It received twice the samples needed for its mission to the asteroid Bennu to be successful
NASA spacecraft sends asteroid samples to Earth
A NASA spacecraft containing samples from a nearby asteroid has returned to Earth after a seven-year mission.
Damian Henderson, Associated Press
That First asteroid sample The material NASA obtained from space contains twice the amount of material scientists expected to obtain, according to a press release.
“The OSIRIS-REx sample is the largest sample of a carbon-rich asteroid ever delivered to Earth, and will help scientists investigate the origins of life on our planet for generations to come,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement. NASA seeks to answer questions about who we are and where we come from.”
Delivery was made last fall, but according to NASAIt took longer than expected to get all the samples. Disassembly of the touch-and-go sample acquisition mechanism, TAGSAM, the system used to collect samples, was temporarily halted due to two stuck fasteners.
After developing the new tool, scientists in the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Division, ARES, were able to open the capsule and collect the remaining samples.
NASA said it would store 70% of the samples at the Johnson Space Center in Houston for further study by scientists from around the world.
“Later this spring, the processing team will release the OSIRIS-REx sample catalog, which will make asteroid samples available for order by the global scientific community,” NASA said in a statement. pers conference.
What happened according to NASA
- In September 2023, NASA received space access from the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft during its flyby of Earth. A capsule containing asteroid samples collected in 2020 has been delivered.
- The capsule was launched 63,000 miles away and landed four hours later in a remote military area. Associated Press News reported Inside the capsule is a half-cup sample of the 4.5 billion year old asteroid Bennu.
- Osiris was on its way to collect samples from another asteroid, the AP reported, when the Bennu samples were strapped into a helicopter and flown to a temporary clean room at the Department of Defense’s Utah Test and Training Site before being sent to NASA’s Johnson Space. Middle.
- In October, NASA had collected 2.48 ounces, 70.3 grams, of rock and dust from the outside of the box containing TAGSAM, but scientists stopped their research because of a stubborn fastener that wouldn’t open. The team needed the spacecraft to collect about 2.12 ounces and deemed the mission a success despite the delays.
- In January 2024, they have developed a safe TAGSAM fastener releaser.
- In February, NASA announced that it had fully opened TAGSAM and obtained the remaining samples. A total of 4.29 ounces was collected from the asteroid.
What is OSIRIS-REx and what is its mission?
OSIRIS-REx, which stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, is a small rover with solar panels to drive it.
On his visit to Bennu, he collected samples from the asteroid’s surface, and sealed them in a 3-foot-wide container called a Example of return capsule. The capsule is equipped with a heat shield to protect it while sending samples to Earth.
The cost of the mission, not including launch, was $800 million.
“NASA missions like OSIRIS-REx will improve our understanding of asteroids that could threaten Earth, while also giving us a glimpse of what lies beyond,” Nelson said. “The samples have returned to Earth, but there’s still a lot of science to come – science we’ve never seen before.”
Julia is a features reporter for USA TODAY. He has covered a variety of topics, from local business and government in his hometown of Miami, to technology and pop culture. You can follow it X, previously known as Twitter, Instagram And TIK case: @juliamariegz.
Contributing: George Petras, Ramon Padilla and Janet Lohrke, USA TODAY.
2024-02-20 02:33:35
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