Tag: NASA bennu study

Technology

NASA lab hopes to find life’s building blocks in asteroid sample

Eager scientists and a gleaming lab awaits.A sample from the asteroid Bennu, which could be key to understanding the formation of the solar system and our own planet, is set to be analyzed at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston after it reaches Earth in late September. The precious cargo is currently aboard OSIRIS-REx, a US space probe launched in 2016 to Bennu, which orbits the Sun at an average distance of about 105 million miles (168 million kilometers). Long white sleeves hang from the huge metal and glass box in which the sample will be handled.Scientists will separate pieces of the rock and dust for study now, while carefully storing away the rest for future generations equipped with better technology -- a practice first started during the Apollo missions to the Moon."We don't...
Technology

Will 1614-foot asteroid Bennu ever crash into Earth? NASA’s OSIRIS-REx craft watching closely

NASA JPL has studied an asteroid named Bennu with the help of its OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Will the 1614-foot asteroid Bennu hit the planet? Here’s what NASA has to say about this asteroid. Asteroids have been flying closely by Earth for millions of years and some have crashed into it. August alone has witnessed more than 40 asteroids passing by and September is set to continue the pattern as we have already seen more than a dozen asteroids passing by closely. However, all these asteroids are relatively small in size with a width of a couple of hundred feet. Still, NASA has classified all these asteroids as Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA) due to the close proximity with which they pass by Earth. These asteroids, althou...