asteroid sample return
A Combination Drill and Gas Conveyor Could Simplify Asteroid Extraction
Collecting material from an asteroid seems like a simple task. In reality, it isn't. Low gravity, high rotational speeds, lack…
Asteroid Ryugu Contained Bonus Comet Particles
On December 5th, 2020, Japan's Hayabusa2 mission successfully returned samples it had collected from the Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) 162173 Ryugu…
Watch OSIRIS-REx Release its Sample Capsule
Most of the spacecraft we send out into the Solar System are never meant to return. Time, space, and entropy…
OSIRIS-REx Would Have Sunk Deep into Asteroid Bennu if it Tried to Land
A pair of studies published in Science and Science Advances have helped identify that NASA’s OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource…
Just A Couple Of Weeks From Now, OSIRIS-REx Will Grab A Sample From Bennu
NASA is about to achieve another first for their organization. In about three weeks time, on October 20th, the OSIRIS-REx…
Hayabusa2’s Mission isn’t Over. It has a New Asteroid Target to Visit: 1998 KY26
In an expected move, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced a mission extension for their Hayabusa2 spacecraft. Hayabusa2…
OSIRIS-REx Will Collect a Sample from Bennu on October 20th
The date is finally set for OSIRIS-REx's sampling maneuver. The spacecraft has been at asteroid Bennu since the end of…
OSIRIS-REx Descended Down to Just 75 Meters Above the Surface of Bennu in a Recent Test
NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is getting ready for its big moment. OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer) is…
OSIRIS-REx did its Closest Flyover Yet, just 250 Meters Above its Sample Site
NASA's OSIRIS-REx is getting closer, physically and temporally, to its primary goal. The spacecraft arrived at Bennu at the end…
Asteroid Ryugu is a “Fragile Rubble Pile”
When Japan's Hayabusa 2 spacecraft arrived at asteroid Ryugu in June 2018, it carried four small rovers with it. Hayabusa…