OSIRIS-REx receives its first close-up photos of the asteroid Bennu

Finally, NASA's OSIRIS-REx space probe (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Spectral Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer) provided a close-up, personal view of the asteroid Bennu.

This composite image was created from eight photos taken by the camera's PolyCam camera. Once the machine transmitted its data to Earth, the researchers used a super-resolution algorithm to combine the photos and allow us to take a fresh look at the rocky terrain of the asteroid. The mission spent more than two years moving towards the carbon-rich asteroid and is now less than 330 kilometers from its target.

"The first images that capture the entire asteroid are used for a significant number of calibrations that are fundamental to correctly interpret the results obtained from higher resolution images using different color filters," he said. Juan Luis Rizos García, researcher at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) and part of the OSIRIS-REx team, in a press release.

Once the spacecraft lands in Bennu in December, it will switch to MapCam, its color filter, which will map the asteroid and document its physical characteristics. The camera will also look for an alteration of surface minerals that may have been caused by the presence of liquid water.

Primitive science

The obligations of OSIRIS-REx go far beyond taking pictures. The mission, which has embarked on its 1.77 billion kilometer (1.77 billion kilometer) round trip in September 2016, will also look for satellites in orbit, or mini-moons; study the spectrum of the asteroid to determine its composition; and finally collect samples to bring back to Earth. Scheduled for July 2020, the craft will descend on a pre-screened landing site and use its Touch-And-Go (TAGSAM) sample acquisition mechanism to make contact with the surface. In the space of just five seconds, the mission will fire the surface with nitrogen and break it down into pieces small enough to bring them back to Earth.

These samples will not only give researchers an intact look at an asteroid, but they will also allow us to study the formation and evolution of our solar system. It is thought that asteroids have remained more or less the same since their appearance in the early days of our solar system and still harbor the organic molecules, volatile compounds and amino acids responsible for creating life on Earth. By probing the asteroids, researchers could better understand these crucial elements and eventually track their spread in our old solar system.

And since previous observations have shown that Bennu is rich in carbon, an important element of the first asteroids in our solar system, it is a promising and primitive target.

But that's not the only reason the researchers decided to investigate Bennu. Every six years, the asteroid is located less than 300 000 km from the Earth, which places it on NASA's list of potentially dangerous asteroids. Although the odds are slim, it is possible that the 1,500-meter-long body will impact the Earth at the end of the 22nd century. Such an event would be far from catastrophic, but if you have the opportunity, you might as well evaluate your competition.

The OSIRIS-REx results will only be slightly lower than those of JAXA's Hayabusa2 mission, arriving on the Ryugu asteroid in June and probing until 2020. and the history of our solar system could soon be on us.