Close-up of samples collected by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft
NASA
For the first time, we examined samples from 4.5 billion-year-old asteroids that were rich in carbon and water, the ingredients necessary for life.
“By peering into the ancient secrets preserved within the dust and tiny rocks of asteroid Bennu, we are unlocking a time capsule that provides deep insight into the origins of our solar system.” he stated. Dante Lauretta Principal Investigator of NASA’s OSIRIS-Rex Mission at the University of Arizona; in a statement. “The abundance of carbon-rich materials and water-bearing clay minerals is just the tip of the cosmic iceberg.”
Samples were extracted from Bennu by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft in 2020. The spacecraft traveled millions of kilometers to return to Earth. The capsule filled with the samples landed in the Utah desert on September 24th. The capsule was then transported to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where researchers began analyzing its contents in a clean room built specifically for the mission.
OSIRIS-REx’s goal is to collect about 60 grams of material from Bennu so it can study space rocks that formed billions of years ago and have not been changed by heat or water since, like the meteorites that hit Earth. It was to do so. The capsule actually contained much more material. actual, Researchers have not yet analyzed all of its contents. Instead, they studied the charcoal-colored dust and small benne pebbles (see image above) that had settled around the lid and bottom of the sample-holding canister. They subjected the material to a series of analytical tests, which revealed the presence of water, carbon, and some organic molecules.
“Carbon and water are not life, but they are the building blocks that life needs, and there are other important substances and minerals,” he says. timothy grotto At Stony Brook University in New York. He said researchers may be able to predict some of the elements identified in the samples, but further analysis of them could reveal how water changed from the early days of solar system development to rocky asteroids over time. He said that it would be obvious if he did it.
Paul Byrne Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis say this could have implications for how water came to Earth and the timeline for its presence on other planets. By knowing how much water there is in Bennu, we may be able to find out whether the earth was born wet or whether water was brought in after the earth was born dry. Researchers could extrapolate this understanding to planets like Venus, which are now dry but may have once carried water, he says.
NASA researchers will continue analyzing and characterizing the samples over the next two years. However, at least 70 percent of the material will be preserved for further study by scientists around the world and for the future.
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