Tag: asteroid sample return

OSIRIS-REx Snaps Parting Shot of Bennu Departs for Earth with Treasure Trove of Primordial Asteroid Samples

For SpaceUpClose.com & RocketSTEM CAPE CANAVERAL, FL – NASA’s bold and wildly successful OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successful fired up its main engine for seven minutes Monday afternoon, May 10, to bid adieu and depart Asteroid Bennu placing the probe on a trajectory heading for a return to Earth in 2023 and delivery of a treasure trove of pristine primordial asteroid material

Japanese Hayabusa 2 Capsule Lands in Australia with Pristine Asteroid Samples After 6 Year Voyage

For SpaceUpClose.com & RocketSTEM CAPE CANAVERAL, FL –  Japan’s ambitious Hayabusa 2 spacecraft successfully delivered a sample return capsule to a safe landing in the remote Australian outback today, Dec. 5, after surviving a scorching reentry plunge that created a dazzling fireball as  it streaked through the Earth’s atmosphere while carrying pristine soil and rock samples gathered from an ancient asteroid