CNET News reports that on Wednesday, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft conducted a flyover of asteroid Bennu, from which it had collected a sample in October 2020. NASA said that it decided to do the flyby to examine “the extent of the mess it made” on the asteroid when it collected the sample. NASA “said Osiris-Rex successfully completed the flyover and spent nearly six hours imaging the asteroid.” In a Wednesday statement, NASA said, “It will take until at least April 13 for Osiris-Rex to downlink all of the data and new pictures of Bennu’s surface recorded during the flyby.”
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Tag: Bennu
NASA Says OSIRIS-REx Will Leave Asteroid Bennu May 10
The Houston Chronicle reports that NASA announced Tuesday that the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will leave asteroid Bennu on May 10. OSIRIS-REx Deputy Project Manager Michael Moreau said, “Leaving Bennu’s vicinity in May puts us in the ‘sweet spot,’ when the departure maneuver will consume the least amount of the spacecraft’s onboard fuel.” The departure date “could also provide time for the OSIRIS-REx team to conduct a final flyby of Bennu. This would provide another look at the site where the spacecraft collected samples – to determine how its touch-and-go maneuver affected the surface of Bennu – and could be used to check the spacecraft’s scientific instruments and see if they’re healthy enough to possibly extend the mission after Bennu’s samples are returned to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023.” The flight back to Earth is expected to take two years.
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NASA’s Asteroid-Sampling Mission on Track for Next Year
SPACE reports, “The spacecraft at the center of NASA’s first asteroid sample return mission has altered its trajectory in preparation for its return to Earth next year. On Sept. 21 OSIRIS-REx spacecraft fired its thrusters for 30 seconds for a course correction.” This is the first time the craft has changed course since leaving the space rock on May 10 of last year.
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