by APOD Robot » Mon Oct 12, 2020 4:05 am
Descending Toward Asteroid Bennu
Explanation: What would it be like to land on an asteroid? Although no human has yet done it,
NASA's robotic
OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is scheduled to attempt to touch the surface of asteroid
101955 Bennu next week. The goal is to
collect a sample from the
nearby minor planet for return to Earth for a detailed analysis in 2023. The
featured video shows what it looks like to descend toward the 500-meter diamond-shaped asteroid, based on a digital map of
Bennu's rocky surface constructed from image and surface data taken by
OSIRIS-REx over the past 1.5 years.
The video begins by showing a rapidly
spinning Bennu -- much faster than its real rotation period of 4.3 hours. After the rotation stops, the virtual camera drops you down to just above the
rugged surface and circles a house-sized rock outcrop
named Simurgh, with the flatter outcrop Roc visible behind it. If the
return sample reaches Earth successfully, it will be
scrutinized for
organic compounds that might have seeded a
young Earth, rare or unusual elements and minerals, and clues about the
early history of our
Solar System.
[url=https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap201012.html] [img]https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/S_201012.jpg[/img] [size=150]Descending Toward Asteroid Bennu[/size][/url]
[b] Explanation: [/b] What would it be like to land on an asteroid? Although no human has yet done it, [url=https://www.nasa.gov/]NASA[/url]'s robotic [url=https://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex]OSIRIS-REx[/url] [url=https://www.asteroidmission.org/]spacecraft[/url] is scheduled to attempt to touch the surface of asteroid [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/101955_Bennu]101955 Bennu[/url] next week. The goal is to [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_hSNBmpuqY]collect a sample[/url] from the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near-Earth_object]nearby[/url] [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_planet]minor planet[/url] for return to Earth for a detailed analysis in 2023. The [url=https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4863]featured video[/url] shows what it looks like to descend toward the 500-meter diamond-shaped asteroid, based on a digital map of [url=https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/asteroids-comets-and-meteors/asteroids/101955-bennu/overview/]Bennu[/url]'s rocky surface constructed from image and surface data taken by [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OSIRIS-REx]OSIRIS-REx[/url] over the past 1.5 years. [url=https://www.youtube.com/embed/fbEcHDfi-vM]The video[/url] begins by showing a rapidly [url=https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap191223.html]spinning Bennu[/url] -- much faster than its real rotation period of 4.3 hours. After the rotation stops, the virtual camera drops you down to just above the [url=https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200916.html]rugged surface[/url] and circles a house-sized rock outcrop [url=https://www.asteroidmission.org/?attachment_id=22530#main]named Simurgh[/url], with the flatter outcrop Roc visible behind it. If the [url=https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap181104.html]return sample[/url] reaches Earth successfully, it will be [url=https://synergylabs.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/dog-microscope.jpg]scrutinized[/url] for [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_compound]organic compounds[/url] that might have seeded a [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwWWuttntio]young Earth[/url], rare or unusual elements and minerals, and clues about the [url=https://mobile.arc.nasa.gov/public/iexplore/missions/pages/yss/november.html]early history[/url] of our [url=https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/our-solar-system/in-depth/]Solar System[/url].
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