![]() ![]() ![]() NASA’s Galileo probe previously surveyed asteroids Gaspra and Ida a decade earlier on its way to far-off Jupiter. Situated 120 million miles (190 million kilometers) away, Eros was not the first asteroid to gain fleeting human - or at least robotic - company. ![]() The spacecraft launched during Valentine’s week in 1996, reached its destination during Valentine’s week in 2000, and it landed during Valentine’s week in 2001.Īnd as if that were not enough, the target of NEAR Shoemaker’s insatiable desire was none other than the stony asteroid Eros, a Staten Island-sized lump of primordial silicate-rich rubble named after the ancient Greek god of love. But over the course of its life, it’s had frequent run-ins with the romantic holiday. NEAR Shoemaker - NASA’s Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous mission, a name later modified to honour planetary scientist Eugene Shoemaker - may now be far from Earthly companionship. As hearts across the globe flutter this weekend for Valentine’s Day, spare a thought for a long-dead space probe, which for 20 years has sat in forlorn silence and solitude on a tiny peanut-shaped world at the fringe of the inner solar system. The rest, NASA says, will be reserved for "other scientists to study, now and in future generations."įollow us on Twitter Spacedotcom and on Facebook. Once unpacked, a fourth of the recovered material will be designated for the OSIRIS-REx researchers. We are bringing that level of discipline and dedication to this final phase of the flight operations," said OSIRIS-REx principal investigator Dante Lauretta. "These accomplishments are the direct result of the extensive training and rehearsals that we performed every step of the way. Once brought to JSC, a careful unpacking procedure will be observed, which is also being rehearsed leading up to OSIRIS-REx's arrival. Ground samples will also be taken from OSRIS-REx's touchdown location, to test against any contamination risk during landing. Upon landing, the return capsule will be transported to a mobile clean room, where technicians will then unpack the vessel's heat shield and protective exterior to reveal the sealed container of recovered Bennu material. NASA's OSIRIS-REx probe could make a 2nd stop at infamous asteroid Apophis The greatest asteroid missions of all time! OSIRIS-REx: NASA's asteroid study and sample return mission Images from OSIRIS-REx show the entire surface of the asteroid Bennu. Asteroid material collected in space is free of any Earthly contamination and contains particles smaller than those that survive on space rocks that zoom through our planet's atmosphere. Meteorite samples found on Earth are useful for this type of research, but only to a point. Scientists are interested in samples from Bennu and asteroids like it because of their potential to hold clues to planetary formation processes and even, potentially, molecular evidence for the precursors to life. "Once the sample capsule touches down, our team will be racing against the clock to recover it and get it to the safety of a temporary clean room," Mike Moreau, deputy project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, said in an agency press release. With only six months to go, NASA crews are doing what NASA crews do best: rehearsing, to practice recovering the roughly 8.8-ounce (250 grams) sample taken from Bennu and ensure it doesn't get contaminated by any terrestrial germs. Related: Dramatic sampling shows asteroid Bennu is nothing like scientists expected ![]()
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