Yesterday , NASA ’s OSIRIS - king spacecraft choke by theasteroid Bennufor the last time , ending its two - and - a - half - year relationship with the distance rock candy . But OSIRIS - male monarch is still lingering in the asteroid ’s locality , as if hesitant to embark on its roughly 200 - million - mile return to Earth . That trip-up will lead off in early May .
OSIRIS - REx is carrying cute sampling from the asteroid and should arrive back on Earth on September 24 , 2023 .
“ get out Bennu ’s neck of the woods in May puts us in the ‘ sweet position , ’ when the departure maneuver will consume the least amount of the spacecraft ’s onboard fuel , ” said Michael Moreau , a deputy project director for the OSIRIS - REx mission at NASA ’s Goddard Space Flight Center in astatement . Moreau added that it the largest propellent maneuver the spacecraft engaged in since first come on Bennu in October 2018 .
Artist’s conception of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft leaving Bennu (visible at bottom left).Illustration: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona (Fair Use)
As OSIRIS - REx departed its familiar domain , it captured trope of the asteroid ’s surface from about 2 mile aside . NASA research worker go for these will show how Bennu ’s surface change after OSIRIS - REx ’s sampling collection , which required the space vehicle attack material off the rock ’s surface .
The“Touch and Go ” ( TAG ) sample distribution collectionon October 20 , 2020 was a winner , but the team added the flyby to their loss docket to get a smell at how they may have altered the asteroid surface . The flyby was almost six hours , covering more than a full rotary motion of the asteroid .
“ By surveying the distribution of the hollow textile around the TAG situation , we will acquire more about the nature of the surface and subsurface stuff along with the mechanical properties of the asteroid , ” said Dante Lauretta , a global scientist at the University of Arizona and the principal police detective for OSIRIS - male monarch , in a NASApress release .
Asteroid Bennu.Illustration: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona
We ’ll be staying tuned for those latest image , which should come out in about a week . The spacecraft portion out the antennae for Earthbound communiques with the Perseverance scouter , which is also in use mail back messages at the moment . So it may take some time .
There ’s about a calendar month to go before OSIRIS - REx lead off its return trip . Hopefully those last asteroid images will be enough to keep us intrigued until September 2023 .
101955 BennuMinor planetsOSIRIS - RExPlanetary surfaceSpacecraft
The spacecraft caused quite a stir on the asteroid when it collected the sample.Illustration: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (Fair Use)
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