OSIRIS-REx

OSIRIS-REx: The First U.S. Mission to Collect an Asteroid Sample

The OSIRIS-REx mission is a NASA asteroid-study and sample-return mission to the near-Earth asteroid 101955 Bennu. Launched in September 2016, it arrived at Bennu in December 2018 and spent two years studying the asteroid's surface, composition, and gravity field. In October 2020, the spacecraft successfully collected a sample of at least 60 grams from Bennu's surface using its robotic arm. OSIRIS-REx departed Bennu in May 2021 and is on its way back to Earth. The sample capsule is expected to land in the Utah desert on September 24, 2023. The mission aims to provide scientists with valuable data about Bennu, a primitive asteroid that could shed light on the formation of the Solar System and the origins of life on Earth. In addition to collecting the sample, OSIRIS-REx conducted various scientific investigations, including mapping the asteroid's surface, analyzing its composition, measuring its gravity field, and testing the feasibility of extracting water from asteroids. The mission is considered a major success and will continue to be a significant source of knowledge for generations to come.