NASA will launch asteroid sampling mission OSIRIS-REx today

At around 7:05 p.m. EDT, NASA will launch its OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer) craft, which represents the United States first attempt to sample an asteroid. You can watch the launch here:

A truck-sized probe packed with instruments and retractable robotic arm, OSIRIS-REx will soon be hurtling in the direction of the asteroid 101955 Bennu, on a round-trip journey to grab an unrivaled souvenir: asteroid soil that could offer details about the very early universe.

After launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida, OSIRIS-REx will take two years to reach the asteroid. The spacecraft will analyze some of the samples it collects remotely using on-board instruments, including the Regolith X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (REXIS).

“From the launch pad, we have a two-year journey around the sun to catch up to Bennu and fire our thrusters to have the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft go into orbit,” Richard Binzel, a planetary scientist and principal investigator for REXIS, told MIT News. “Our first orbits are rather distant as we get the ‘feel’ for Bennu’s gravity field before going lower. We have a suite of cameras that will begin a detailed reconnaissance of the asteroid surface to create a list of promising sample sites.”

The spectrometer will evaluate the relationship of the sun’s X-rays with the soil, or regolith, to spot chemical elements on Bennu’s exterior. REXIS could also determine the optimal locations for the robotic arm to take a sample.

Binzel said REXIS has “X-ray eyes” that will then start scanning Bennu’s exterior to pre-plan regions that may be glowing in reaction to the sun’s X-ray light. By gauging the exact energies the soil gives off, REXIS investigators hope to locate regions that might be especially rich in iron, silicon, sulfur, and magnesium. A map of atomic elements will be used to contrast their readings with other teams’ maps of minerals, and the team will weigh the pros and cons of each location.

“Our emphasis will be on material that looks like it has been well-preserved since the beginning of our solar system,” Binzel said.

The mission is slated to return an asteroid sample to Earth in 2023.

—–

Image credit: NASA

The post NASA will launch asteroid sampling mission OSIRIS-REx today appeared first on Redorbit.

redOrbit.com
offers Science, Space, Technology, Health news, videos, images and reference information. For the latest science news, space news, technology news, health news visit redOrbit.com frequently. Learn something new every day.”