NASA’s OSIRIS-Rex Mission Successfully Retrieves Largest Asteroid Sample in Space History
In a groundbreaking achievement, NASA’s OSIRIS-Rex mission has successfully retrieved the largest asteroid sample ever collected in space. After months of struggling to open the asteroid sample canister, agency scientists have finally determined the weight of the dust and rock brought back to Earth by the spacecraft. Despite initial estimates suggesting that the sample was about the size of a cup, it turns out that the total weight is 4.29 ounces, which is equivalent to half a cup. This surpasses the mission’s goal and marks a significant milestone in space exploration.
The OSIRIS-Rex mission, short for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security Regolith Explorer, was launched in 2016 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The $800 million robotic spacecraft embarked on a 4-billion-mile journey to Bennu, an ancient space rock roughly the size of the Empire State Building. On September 24, 2023, the spacecraft dropped the sample from 63,000 miles above Earth onto a remote area in Utah desert, completing its mission.
This achievement is particularly noteworthy as it is the first U.S. mission to retrieve a sample of an asteroid since the Apollo moon rocks collected between 1969 and 1972. The significance of this feat cannot be overstated, as it opens up new possibilities for scientific research and exploration.
While NASA’s success with the OSIRIS-Rex mission is commendable, Japan’s space agency, JAXA, has also made significant strides in asteroid sample retrieval. JAXA has already retrieved samples twice from asteroids Itokawa and Ryugu. However, NASA’s mission seems to have been more successful in capturing material compared to the Japanese Hayabusa missions. JAXA’s first sample return mission to asteroid Itokawa in 2005 ended in a crash landing, resulting in the collection of less than a milligram of particles. The second mission to asteroid Ryugu in 2020 brought back only 5.4 grams, which is less than a quarter-ounce.
Bennu was chosen as the target for NASA’s mission due to its high carbon content, which could provide valuable insights into the chemical origins of life. Additionally, Bennu poses a remote but potential threat of colliding with Earth in the future. By studying this asteroid, scientists hope to gather crucial information that could aid in developing strategies to deflect it if necessary.
The journey to retrieve the asteroid sample was not without its challenges. In mid-October, scientists encountered a setback when they realized that two of the screws on the sample container were stuck. However, NASA quickly devised new tools to address the issue and successfully opened the canister. Now, the Bennu rubble will be divided and distributed to scientists worldwide for further analysis. JAXA is expected to receive approximately 0.5 percent of the contents, while NASA will retain at least 70 percent of the sample at Johnson Space Center in Houston for preservation.
The successful retrieval of the largest asteroid sample in space history marks a significant milestone for NASA and the field of space exploration. This achievement opens up new possibilities for scientific research and brings us closer to understanding the mysteries of our universe. As we continue to push the boundaries of space exploration, collaborations between different space agencies, such as the partnership between NASA and JAXA, will play a crucial role in advancing our knowledge and expanding our horizons beyond Earth.