The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collected rock and dust samples on the asteroid Bennu in 2020. Examining these samples, NASA scientists made a “surprising” discovery. Accordingly, the surface of the asteroid turned out to be very different than expected.
NASA likens asteroid surface to a plastic ball pool
The space agency states that the particles that make up the outside of Bennu have a much looser structure than expected. NASA went a step further and compared the rather loose asteroid to a ball pool.
Bennu had his first surprise when OSIRIS-REx reached the asteroid. The asteroid surprised with its rock-filled structure as opposed to a sandy surface as observed from Earth and space. Now, the asteroid has once again surprised scientists with its soft tissue structure.
To unravel the density of the asteroid’s surface, the scientists analyzed the spacecraft’s acceleration data and images captured during the contact process. Hundreds of different simulations were created for the data that emerged as a result of the analyzes made.
NASA states that with the discoveries made, more accurate observations can be made about distant asteroids. With the correct determinations made, better predictions can be made about space objects. The discovery that the asteroid has a very different structure in this study has pushed scientists to different working methods.
With the latest collected data, it has been revealed that not all asteroids have a hard shell structure. In this way, scientists began to work on the dangers of Bennu and similar asteroids. It is stated that such asteroids, which can remain as a whole thanks to gravity and electrostatic force, may pose different dangers if they break up in the atmosphere.
OSIRIS-REx will deliver the sample from the asteroid Bennu in September 2023. Scientists believe that Bennu formed in the first 10 million years of our solar system’s existence. The sample from the asteroid could therefore unravel some of the mysteries about the origins of life.
We need to wait until 2023 for the mystery of the Bennu asteroid to be solved. So what do you think about this discovery made by NASA? You can share your views with us in the comments section.
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