NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Successfully Collects Sample from Asteroid Bennu 🌑

On Oct. 20, 2020, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission touched asteroid Bennu, over 200 million miles from Earth. 🌌 The spacecraft’s robotic arm collected asteroid material in just 6 seconds. This historic event helps scientists study the building blocks of our solar system. ✨ Key Mission Facts: 🌑 Target: Asteroid Bennu, a carbon-rich near-Earth asteroid 🚀 Distance: 200 million miles (321 million km) from Earth ⏱️ Contact Duration: Only 6 seconds on the surface 🤖 Robotic Arm: TAGSAM (Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism) 💨 Nitrogen Gas: Stirred up rocks and dust for capture 📦 Sample: Regolith (rock + dust) from site “Nightingale” 🔥 Speed: 0.2 mph on touchdown, 0.9 mph when backing away 🛰️ Imaging: 82 frames over 5 minutes, from 82 ft altitude to 43 ft 🌍 Goal: Return samples to Earth for study of solar system origins 🔔 Subscribe for more science shorts: CurioOrb Channel 📷 Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona #shorts #nasa #space #curioorbx #OSIRISREx #BennuAsteroid #NASA #SpaceFacts #ScienceShorts #AsteroidSample #SpaceExploration #SolarSystem #AstronomyShorts #EducationalShorts