The moment Osiris-Rex touches Bennu’s surface.
NASA / Goddard / University of Arizona
In October 2020, NASA Osiris-Rex spacecraft took a bite out of the asteroid Bennu. Before Osiris-Rex returns to Earth to deliver his abundance, it will revisit the scene of the heist.
The asteroid-investigating spacecraft will perform one last short flight from Bennu to discover “the extent of the mess it made”, NASA announced on Thursday.
Osiris-Rex was a bit greedy during the sampling, and had a abundant amount of gravel it had to be stored sooner than expected. This left a mark on the asteroid.
“The Osiris-Rex team decided to add this last transition after Bennu’s surface was significantly disturbed by the sample collection,” NASA said. “During the touch, the spacecraft’s sampling head sank 48.8 centimeters into the surface of the asteroid and at the same time fired a charge of nitrogen gas under pressure.” The thrusters fired to keep Osiris-Rex away also disturbed the surface.
NASA planned the flight for April 7 with the goal of capturing photos of the collection site at a short distance of only 3.7 kilometers (3.7 kilometers).
Osiris-Rex will continue to hang around with Bennu until May 10, when it will begin a two-year return trip to Earth. The Bennu pieces will be delivered to scientists via a sample-back capsule stored by the spacecraft.
Meanwhile, NASA will compare the before and after images from the sample website to see how big a tattoo Osiris-Rex left on Bennu.
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