First peek at ‘amazing’ asteroid sample from Osiris-Rex via NASA
According on what we have seen so far, it truly is gorgeous, according to Dr. Ashley King.
A small group of people, including the UK scientist, were given the opportunity to examine the stony samples that had just been returned from the asteroid Bennu.
The materials are being studied in a specialized lab in Texas after being collected by a US space agency (Nasa) mission and returning to Earth 17 days ago.
According to Dr. King, “We’ve verified we went to the right asteroid,” he told BBC News.
The black, otherworldly powder was discovered to be rich in minerals that are both water- and carbon-rich after a three-day investigation by the Natural History Museum (NHM) expert and five other members of the “Quick Look” team.
That is very promising. There is a theory that suggests Bennu-type asteroids and other carbon- and water-rich asteroids may have helped bring vital elements to the developing Earth system 4.5 billion years ago. It’s possible that this is how we obtained the water in our seas and some of the molecules required to spark the emergence of life.
These theories will be put to the test using the asteroid samples.
“We’re attempting to identify who, what, and where we are. Where do we fit into the grandeur of the universe? stated Bill Nelson, the administrator of NASA, at a briefing at the Johnson Space Center, the location of the specialized lab.
‘Awesome’ asteroid sample recovery is praised by NASA
A trip back to our roots is provided by the asteroid Bennu.
Meteorite strengthens the case for water coming from space.
Despite the fact that the expedition clearly returned a “abundance of sample,” scientists are still unsure of just how much Bennu they actually have.
The inner chamber that the Osiris-Rex spacecraft used to store the asteroid fragments for the journey home has not yet been completely emptied of its contents and weighed. The sample canister that landed in the Utah desert on September 24 has been opened.
The mission crew estimates that it contains a total of 250 grams (9 oz). To confirm this estimate, meticulous disassembly will be required for a few more days.
Source: NASA
Dr. King and his colleagues used Tag-Sam (Touch and Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism) particles, which were spilled from the inner chamber, to conduct their initial studies. All the surfaces surrounding the canister are covered in this fine Bennu dust.
“When they removed the sample canister’s lid, nothing but this black powder was visible. It was amazing and exhilarating, Dr. King recalled.
“At that moment, we were all seated, but immediately everyone jumped up and began pointing at the TV. For the “quick look,” that meant we had a ton of options to work with. It simplified our work.”
The dust was examined under an electron microscope, by X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, and computed tomography (CT) technology.
The existence of that carbon is one of the main discoveries. Many of it. Almost 5% of the total.
“That is significant. When the results came in, some of the team’s scientists exclaimed, “Wow, oh my God!” Dr. Daniel Galvin, a researcher at the Goddard Space Flight Center of NASA, said. The rapid glance team found carbonates as well as more sophisticated organics.
Dr. Dante Lauretta, the lead researcher on the Osiris-Rex project, emphasized the samples’ water content preserved in clay minerals.
“They have water locked inside their crystal structure,” the cosmochemist from the University of Arizona said.
“I need to pause and consider what that implies. We believe that water arrived on Earth in this manner. Clay minerals, like the ones we are seeing with Bennu, arrived on Earth 4.5 billion years ago, making it a habitable planet with seas, lakes, rivers, and rain.
In October 2020, the Osiris-Rex spacecraft collected the Bennu elements after performing a risky maneuver to approach and “high-five” the asteroid while it was 330 million kilometers (205 million miles) away from Earth.
The NASA probe eventually returned home and dropped off its priceless cargo in a restricted military test zone a few hours’ drive west of Salt Lake City, but it took almost three years.
A fraction of the complete sample, after it has been retrieved, will be distributed to researchers all over the world. The NHM’s Dr. King’s department and its partners at the Open, Oxford, and Manchester universities are planning to bring about 100 milligrams to the UK so that they can continue their work there.
A wide range of experiments are expected to be finished by the Osiris-Rex teams in time to present findings at the LPSC in March. The journal Meteoritics & Planetary Science is also anticipated to publish two significant overview pieces at the same time.