Osiris-Rex

Nasa’s Osiris-Rex spacecraft has achieved orbit around asteroid Bennu.

  • Its mission is to survey the small asteroid and then collect a sample of the surface material to send back to Earth for analysis.
  • Bennu, is a small, spheroidal near-Earth asteroid. Its surface is composed of carbonaceous compounds whose composition reflects the earliest stages of the solar system’s development, while the Earth and the other planets were forming.
  • Osiris-Rex stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer.