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- NASA’s OSIRIS-REx asteroid probe will finally attempt its risky sample collection maneuver next month.
- The spacecraft will perform a delicate “tap and go” maneuver to take a sample from the surface and then return to a safe orbit.
- The sample will eventually be returned to Earth where scientists will study it.
It has been many months since NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft reached its target destination, the space rock known as Bennu. The asteroid is large, messy, and full of mystery, and the probe has spent a lot of time studying its surface and making several interesting discoveries.
It has been a successful adventure thus far, but the spacecraft is about to attempt something that will put it in a great deal of danger, and the overall mission success depends on being able to carry it out. The “TAG” or “Touch-And-Go” sample collection maneuver will be the probe’s opportunity to take material from the asteroid’s rocky surface, but it is by far the riskiest move the spacecraft will have made so far.
NASA is very excited about this important mission goal. It’s the main reason the space agency sent a spacecraft to an asteroid in the first place, so it’s incredibly important that OSIRIS-REx pulls it off. The years of planning that have gone into what will be a relatively short maneuver are somewhat mind-boggling.
In case you’re wondering how important all of this is to NASA, the space agency just released a Hollywood-style movie trailer for the event. Yes, you read it correctly. Check it out:
The mission team has spent a long, long time tracing the asteroid’s surface in search of the perfect spot to collect samples. That process was more difficult than NASA originally thought it would be, as Bennu’s surface is littered with far more debris than scientists anticipated.
So the scientists who carried out the mission spent months searching for potential candidate sites that could provide a safe sample collection opportunity. They narrowed things down and eventually selected one of the locations for the sample collection attempt. Still, the site, called the crater of the nightingale, is not entirely free of debris, and the spacecraft will need to be careful in its descent to the asteroid’s surface.
One of the big problems with the spacecraft taking a sample is that it cannot be controlled in real time due to the great distance from Earth. Instead, the probe will have to rely on its own intelligence once NASA orders it to perform the operation. He has been practicing all the dance for months, and next month he will finally perform the maneuver for real. October 20 is the big day, and we will keep our fingers crossed that everything runs smoothly.
Mike Wehner has reported on technology and video games for the past decade, covering the latest news and trends in virtual reality, wearable devices, smartphones, and future technology. Most recently, Mike served as a technology editor at The Daily Dot and has been featured in USA Today, Time.com, and many other print and web media. His love of reporting is second only to his addiction to games.
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