A turning point in history for NASA. The OSIRIS-Rex mission ended successfully. Last Sunday, the spacecraft dropped the capsule back to Earth from a distance of 63,000 miles. NASA saved the capsule with a successful operation. Then he sent it to the laboratory for examination. Finally, scientists opened the capsule from the Bennu Asteroid. Inside that capsule, there are samples that will shed light on the mystery of the universe. Here are the details…
NASA opened the capsule from Bennu Asteroid!
NASA estimates that when the spacecraft left Bennu in 2020, it collected 250 grams of samples from the asteroid’s surface. The spacecraft collected samples with a Touch-and-Go Sample Collection Mechanism called TAGSAM. Then he quickly jumped off the surface. Briefly, he only made contact with Bennu for a few seconds.
Scientists discovered that the door to the collection chamber was jammed with larger rocky materials, and some rock fragments leaked into space. They therefore decided to quickly hide the sampler inside the return capsule to prevent further material loss. In this way, they aimed to return to Earth with as many samples as they could collect.
There is no stopping for NASA’s spacecraft: After Bennu, its new mission is Apophis Asteroid!
As soon as NASA’s spacecraft dropped the capsule it brought from Bennu Asteroid to the world, it headed towards its new mission, Apophis Asteroid.
We have to wait a little to find out what the OSIRIS-Rex mission brings. The laboratory team has to travel a long way to reach the samples. TAGSAM, which received the samples, was designed to avoid damage on its return journey to Earth. They will then turn the device on completely and analyze larger pieces of rock. But before that, the capsule has a gift. There is powder on the capsule. Scientists think these dusts are from the Bennu Asteroid.
Members of the OSIRIS-REx science team will send some of the dust from the asteroid sample box to a laboratory for analysis. However, scientists guess that the dust grains that can be seen immediately after opening the lid of the box come from Bennu. This dust is thought to have captured rocks during the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft’s touch-and-go landing in 2020. But still, researchers will wait for laboratory results to make definitive statements.
University of Arizona planetary scientist Dante Lauretta waited nearly 20 years to examine pristine samples of an asteroid. He stated that this is the key to unlocking answers to the mysteries of the origin of life on Earth. Finally the day he was waiting for came. On Tuesday, he got his first look at dust grains returned by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission.
Lauretta on Tuesday, “We opened the box today and found that there was an apparent black powder-like material. We hope this is from Bennu. “Tomorrow morning we will collect some of it and send it to the laboratories.” said.