“Initial analysis showed that these are samples with abundant water content in the form of hydrated clay minerals. These contain carbon, both organic and mineral molecules,” Nelson described at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, USA. Scientists hope that material from the asteroid Bennu will help answer some questions about the origin of life and the formation of the Solar System.
The permanent home of the samples will be the (organically uncontaminated) “clean room” in Building 31 of the Johnson Space Center. After six months of initial analysis and sorting, NASA will create a “catalog” from which science teams around the world can request samples and propose research to conduct. If their proposal is approved by the expert committee, in the next nine months they will receive material from the planet Bennu for their own research, explained Nicole Lunningová, chief curator of the OSIRIS-REx project.
“Today’s revelation relies on incredible scientific and engineering work, exceeding the capacity of one team, one institution, one nation,” emphasized Makenzie Lystrup of the Goddard Space Center. “It was exciting to stand in the Utah desert and see the box come down to earth after seven years in space, our teams did the almost impossible. But the most important part of the journey begins now.”
2023-10-11 16:51:22
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