NASA Osiris-Rex to Bring Asteroid ‘Bennu’ Sample Back to the Planet to Land This Month

Isaiah Richard, Tech Times 18 September 2023, 09:09 pm

The famed mission of the NASA OSIRIS-REx is now coming to an end which is not because it is defunct or canceled, but because the spacecraft has completed its mission to retrieve asteroid samples from "Bennu." This mission is more than seven years in the making, with the van-sized spacecraft previously obtaining the samples in 2020 and lingering for as much as a year in the space region.

Now, after two years of its journey, the spacecraft is nearing the planet with a future touchdown to bring the said asteroid samples home for further studies.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx is Coming Home

(Photo : NASA via Twitter)

Getting souvenirs is one of the highlights of spaceflight, and this is something that NASA's OSIRIS-REx is bringing the world on its future landing on the planet. Earlier this month, NASA and its space rock collector fired its ACS (attitude control system) thrusters to position itself on the right course as it continues its travels to the Earth for its soon arrival.

The spacecraft will attempt to land off the coast of California at 7:42 AM Pacific Time once it reaches the planet, soon touching down to a place southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah.

It is expected that the spacecraft would experience the famed atmospheric burn as it re-enters the planet, but its heat shield will protect it. This will also be the indicator for NASA to track down OSIRIS-REx's landing.

Asteroid 'Bennu' Samples are Landing

The years-long mission of OSIRIS-REx is soon to land with asteroid Bennu's samples safely stored in it, expected this coming Sunday, September 24.

OSIRIS-REx's collected sample is set to arrive at the Johnson Space Center in Houston shortly after its landing, with the team looking to study it and deliver its preliminary analysis that they expect to explain more of the Solar System's birth.

Why is OSIRIS-REx Important?

Back in 2020, NASA attempted to perform its mission called a "touch-and-go" landing on the asteroid which it calls "Bennu," and it is one of the most challenging feats of a spacecraft on a space rock. This mission is a complex one, especially as Bennu is known to be a "rubble pile," and has no intact surface, but scattered space rocks which is held together by its gravity.

It was previously speculated that the asteroid was nearing its death, and this was because Bennu was spotted to have cavities on its surface, some of the telltale signs of its decay and soon demise.

That being said, OSIRIS-REx's mission was not in vain, with the spacecraft traveling as much as 200 million miles to reach its cosmic location from the planet. It traveled as much as the same distance since 2021 to go back home.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx traveled for a massive two years before it finally reached the Earth's region in space, and this is a long trip for the spacecraft that holds precious cargo to give more information about the nearly-dying asteroid. Soon, OSIRIS-REx and Bennu are touching down on the planet before September ends, a fateful day for the space rock collector of NASA.