NASA's OSIRIS-REx releases asteroid sample capsule for landing on Earth
What's the story
NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has released the capsule containing a sample from asteroid Bennu, collected in 2020.
The capsule was released at 6:42am ET (4:12pm IST) and is on course to land on Earth. When the sample capsule was let go, OSIRIS-REx was about 1,01,388km from Earth, or about one-third the distance from Earth to the Moon.
The spacecraft has been diverted past Earth "toward its new mission to asteroid Apophis and was renamed OSIRIS-APEX," per NASA.
Twitter Post
Take a look at NASA's post
The #OSIRISREx spacecraft has released the capsule containing a piece of asteroid Bennu. The capsule will plummet through space for four hours, enter the atmosphere over California and land about 13 minutes later in Utah. https://t.co/lK5QmILjtj pic.twitter.com/gECoNC1sHU
— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) September 24, 2023
Trajectory
Capsule will land around 8:12pm
OSIRIS-REx's sample return preparations have gone without a hitch so far. While the spacecraft is now departing from Earth after completing its mission, the sample capsule is on track to re-enter Earth's atmosphere just off the California coast.
According to NASA, the capsule will enter at about 10:42am ET (8:12pm IST) and head east.
It will touch down nearly 13 minutes later in a predetermined area on the Department of Defense's Utah Test and Training Range near Salt Lake City.
Details
Bennu sample will help unravel secrets
Short for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, the OSIRIS-REx mission was launched in 2016 to visit and collect samples from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu.
The 1,650-foot-wide (500 meters) asteroid will fly close to Earth in 2182.
By studying Bennu's composition, scientists hope to gain insights into the early solar system and its formation.
The $1 billion mission will also help better understand the composition of other similar asteroids.
Insights
OSIRIS-REx is now headed to another mission
After releasing the capsule, OSIRIS-REx made a diversion burn at 7.00am ET (4:30pm IST).
The spacecraft is now headed to a new target, the asteroid Apophis. NASA officially renamed the mission OSIRIS-APEX.
Apophis, roughly 1,000 feet wide, will come within 32,186km of Earth—less than one-tenth the distance between Earth and the Moon—in 2029.
OSIRIS-APEX is scheduled to enter Apophis's orbit soon after the asteroid's close approach of Earth to see how the encounter affects asteroid's orbit, spin rate, and surface.