How will NASA extract the samples from the asteroid Bennu?/NASA
After a process that lasted about three months, NASA scientists succeeded in the important task: to open the container of samples collected from asteroid Bennu by the Osiris-Rex spacecraft. Opening the tank, considered a kind of "treasure chest" of information about the history of the solar system, was the main obstacle after collecting material from space.
The spacecraft returned to Earth in September 2023 after collecting several grams of stones and dust from the outer layer of asteroid Bennu. However, the vast majority of samples are kept in a special container that is locked using 35 screws. Two rogue screws prevented access to the contents, making the task of opening the container more difficult than collecting the material itself.
"In addition to the design challenge, we were limited to approved materials to preserve the scientific value of the samples," said Dr. Nicole Luning, a researcher on the team at Osiris-Rex. This may sound like a small, easy-to-solve problem, but the problem is that all the tools used by the team must be able to fit into the "glove compartment," which pumps nitrogen to keep samples free of contamination by Earth's atmosphere.
Space capsule with samples of an asteroid after landing in Utah, Sept. 24, 2023/Reuters
Now, the crew of the US space agency will be able to discover the treasures brought by his son. Preliminary analysis of the dust and stones collected outside the tank has already found clues to the presence of carbon and water in the samples. Later, the opening of the tank is expected to reveal new and fascinating information about the composition of asteroids and the formation processes of the solar system, and to make significant progress in understanding our cosmic history.
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