September 8th 2016 marks an exciting time in history for NASA and many others as the OSIRIS-Rex (Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security and Regolith Explorer) spacecraft is launched into space to embark on a seven year mission to return a large amount of asteroid to Earth. Scientists are hopeful that the mission will lead to a number of important questions being answered, including, “Where did we come from?”
The asteroid in question is named Bennu and is around 500 meters in diameter and experts are confident that by capturing some of it to bring back to Earth for further analysis will tell us a lot about the formation that happened billions of years ago. NASA’s deputy scientist, Christina Richey, states “We think that these asteroids are a source of water and organic material that eventually made its way to Earth and other planetary bodies early in history.”
Landing on Bennu and attempting to drill into it would prove too difficult considering its microgravity properties, so instead the mission involves more of a touch and go approach. Using a solo cup and an air compressor in his driveway, one of Lockheed Martin’s chief scientists at the time, Dr. Ben Clark, designed an idea that involved blasting dirt particles with air and then collecting those that are ejected. As the compressor blows air against the ground, the air goes out of the holes and the particles are collected through the filter.
The TAGSAM (Touch And Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism) is connected to the end of a robotic arm that is 11 foot long and the solo cup has been replaced with a carburettor. As soon as the spacecraft is in place, the TAGSAM will set to work by blasting Bennu’s surface with nitrogen gas and collecting up the particles. Tests so far have shown that the device can collect as much as 2kg of material to bring back down to Earth. But for now, all we can do is wait until 2023 when all will be revealed from the mission to the asteroid, Bennu
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