Touchdown 320 million km away from Earth!

✪ 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆 ✪

Touchdown on the asteroid „Bennu“ 320 million km away from Earth!

Shown here are a series of crisp images taken last week from OSIRIS-REx’s robotic arm as NASA‘s spacecraft swooped, scooped, and then thrusted away from the asteroid’s rocky terrain. Though it took several hours for OSIRIS-REx to reach the surface, the TAG (Touch-and-Go) encounter only lasted for about 6 seconds.

Two days after touching down, the mission team received images that confirmed the spacecraft collected more than enough rocks & dust to meet one of its main mission requirements – at least 60 grams) - for return to Earth in 2023.

It promises to be the largest amount of extraterrestrial material brought back from space since the Apollo era and they hope to find out more about this pristine remnant from the early days of our solar system and how live on earth originated.