NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is set to return to Earth on Sunday, September 24, after a seven-year mission to retrieve samples from the asteroid Bennu. This marks NASA’s first attempt to bring back a piece of pure space rock.
The highly-anticipated drop-off will take place at 10:55 a.m. ET, and the historic moment can be witnessed live through NASA TV, the NASA app, and the agency’s website. Coverage will begin at 10 a.m. ET on Sunday.
During a close flyby of Earth, the spacecraft will release a capsule containing the asteroid sample. The capsule will then perform a parachute-assisted landing at the Department of Defense’s Utah Test and Training Range. It must land within a specific ellipse measuring 37 miles by 9 miles (59 km by 15 km) within 13 minutes of release.
OSIRIS-REx was launched in September 2016 and arrived at asteroid Bennu in December 2018. After two years of observation, the spacecraft landed on Bennu’s surface and collected a sample in October 2020. On May 10, 2021, it began its journey back to Earth to deliver the precious cargo.
Bennu is a small, near-Earth asteroid that scientists believe may have broken off from a larger carbon-rich asteroid 700 million to 2 billion years ago. By analyzing the samples brought back by OSIRIS-REx, scientists hope to gain insights into the origins of life on Earth and whether asteroids played a role in transporting the building blocks of life to our planet.
Following the sample drop-off, OSIRIS-REx will continue its mission by exploring asteroid Apophis. As a result, the mission will be renamed OSIRIS-APEX (OSIRIS-Apophis Explorer).
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