CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA finally has counted up all the asteroid samples returned by a spacecraft last fall — and it’s double the rubble return goal.
Officials reported Thursday that the Osiris-Rex spacecraft collected 121.6 grams (4.29 ounces) of dust and pebbles from asteroid Bennu. That’s just over half a cup and the biggest cosmic haul ever from beyond the moon.
It took NASA longer than expected to pry open the sample container because of stuck fasteners.
The black, carbon-rich samples — the first ever collected from an asteroid by NASA — are stored at a special curation lab at Houston’s Johnson Space Center.
Osiris-Rex returned the samples last September, three years after gathering them from the asteroid. The haul for the $1 billion mission would have been greater, but rocks jammed the lid of the container following the grab and some samples floated away.
Related articles:
Related suggestion:
Beijing parks sparkle with Lantern Festival delightsPaolo Banchero scores 26 as Magic clinch playoff spot with 113Article 20 still leads China's box office chartGLEN OWEN: The honeytrap MP... and the GodfatherWomen of She ethnic group dress up to welcome Lunar New Year in ZhejiangInside the China Online Audiovisual Annual GalaYoung Chinese vlogger strengthens ChinaStudy reveals characteristics of East Asian Homo sapiens 45,000 years agoMcCutchen's 300th homer, Suwinski's grand slam leads Pirates over Phillies 9Feature: Students in Myanmar studying Chinese celebrate Spring Festival
2.1105s , 6500.890625 kb
Copyright © 2024 Powered by NASA's final tally shows spacecraft returned double the amount of asteroid rubble ,Culture Cross news portal