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Last month, NASA scientists received a ‘special delivery’ by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft which contained the first-ever US sample collected from asteroid Bennu in 2020. The OSIRIS-REx – Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer – collected an estimated 8.8 ounces (about 250 grams) of rocky material from the surface of the 4.5-billion-year-old asteroid. Now scientists have revealed information about its composition.
According to the US space agency, NASA the samples show evidence of high-carbon content and water – two of the important building blocks of life on Earth – which may be found in the rock. NASA scientists also showed off the asteroid material for the first time.
Why this discovery is important
NASA administrator Bill Nelson said that the OSIRIS-REx sample will help scientists investigate the origins of life on our own planet for generations to come.
“Almost everything we do at NASA seeks to answer questions about who we are and where we come from. NASA missions like OSIRIS-REx will improve our understanding of asteroids that could threaten Earth while giving us a glimpse into what lies beyond. The sample has made it back to Earth, but there is still so much science to come – science like we’ve never seen before,” he added.
NASA will further study the samples to understand the nature of the carbon compounds found in it and it will offer insights into how our solar system was formed.
It may also tell “how the precursor materials to life may have been seeded on Earth, and what precautions need to be taken to avoid asteroid collisions with our home planet.”
Bonus sample material
NASA said that the goal of the OSIRIS-REx sample collection was 60 grams of asteroid material but when the canister lid was first opened, scientists discovered bonus asteroid material covering the outside of the collector head, canister lid, and base.
“There was so much extra material it slowed down the careful process of collecting and containing the primary sample,” NASA said.
Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx principal investigator, University of Arizona, Tucson, said that these dust and rocks of asteroid Bennu are like a time capsule that offers insights into the origins of our solar system.
For the next two years, the mission’s science team will continue characterising the samples and conduct the analysis. NASA will preserve at least 70% of the sample at Johnson for further research by scientists worldwide, including future generations of scientists.
According to the US space agency, NASA the samples show evidence of high-carbon content and water – two of the important building blocks of life on Earth – which may be found in the rock. NASA scientists also showed off the asteroid material for the first time.
Why this discovery is important
NASA administrator Bill Nelson said that the OSIRIS-REx sample will help scientists investigate the origins of life on our own planet for generations to come.
“Almost everything we do at NASA seeks to answer questions about who we are and where we come from. NASA missions like OSIRIS-REx will improve our understanding of asteroids that could threaten Earth while giving us a glimpse into what lies beyond. The sample has made it back to Earth, but there is still so much science to come – science like we’ve never seen before,” he added.
NASA will further study the samples to understand the nature of the carbon compounds found in it and it will offer insights into how our solar system was formed.
It may also tell “how the precursor materials to life may have been seeded on Earth, and what precautions need to be taken to avoid asteroid collisions with our home planet.”
Bonus sample material
NASA said that the goal of the OSIRIS-REx sample collection was 60 grams of asteroid material but when the canister lid was first opened, scientists discovered bonus asteroid material covering the outside of the collector head, canister lid, and base.
“There was so much extra material it slowed down the careful process of collecting and containing the primary sample,” NASA said.
Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx principal investigator, University of Arizona, Tucson, said that these dust and rocks of asteroid Bennu are like a time capsule that offers insights into the origins of our solar system.
For the next two years, the mission’s science team will continue characterising the samples and conduct the analysis. NASA will preserve at least 70% of the sample at Johnson for further research by scientists worldwide, including future generations of scientists.
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