Member LoginMember Login - User registration - Setup as front page - Add to favorites - Sitemap NASA's final tally shows spacecraft returned double the amount of asteroid rubble !

NASA's final tally shows spacecraft returned double the amount of asteroid rubble

Time:2024-05-21 22:01:44 source:Global Gathering news portal

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA finally has counted up all the asteroid samples returned by a spacecraft last fall — and it’s double the rubble return goal.

Officials reported Thursday that the Osiris-Rex spacecraft collected 121.6 grams (4.29 ounces) of dust and pebbles from asteroid Bennu. That’s just over half a cup and the biggest cosmic haul ever from beyond the moon.

It took NASA longer than expected to pry open the sample container because of stuck fasteners.

The black, carbon-rich samples — the first ever collected from an asteroid by NASA — are stored at a special curation lab at Houston’s Johnson Space Center.

Osiris-Rex returned the samples last September, three years after gathering them from the asteroid. The haul for the $1 billion mission would have been greater, but rocks jammed the lid of the container following the grab and some samples floated away.

Related information
  • Colin Jost left red
  • VOX POPULI: Voters won’t forget ‘politics of oblivion’ in the next election
  • Brick Lane: Chinese political slogans appear on famous London street
  • Cheng Lei China: Jailed Australian TV anchor jailed releases rare message
  • 'Constantly learning' Imanaga off to impressive start with the Chicago Cubs
  • Weather updates: Warnings across South Island, Taranaki, Coromandel, Bay of Plenty
  • Coronavirus China update: China's funeral homes overcrowded amid COVID
  • VOX POPULI: ‘Domicide’ is yet another terrible addition to the lexicon of war
Recommended content
  • Here comes the char
  • Minister 'not convinced' Fire and Emergency needs further levy boost
  • Man almost loses leg to sepsis after cut to back of head with barber’s clippers
  • Man almost loses leg to sepsis after cut to back of head with barber’s clippers
  • Young Boys seals 6th Swiss soccer league title in 7 years after rallying from firing coach Wicky
  • China news: July exports tumble by double digits, adding to pressure to shore up flagging economy