NASA’s Osiris Rex spacecraft returned from Earth in 2016. This was a mission with many peculiarities. Collect samples from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu and bring them back to Earth. This was the main objective of the seven-year Osiris mission. It was in 2020 that Osiris came near Bennu. Osiris thought he could dive into the asteroid and return with some samples. But a big scam was waiting.

It has been seen in the movies that people get stuck and drown in some swamps on earth. A similar trap was waiting in Bennu. Bennu was not as solid a rock structure as thought. Rather it was a shaky surface. A sand-like surface.

Osiris went to the region of Bennu called Nightingale to descend. The mission, which was expected to land safely, went wrong. As soon as Osiris touched the surface, the ground shook and a giant crater formed. It was like a prey being snarled. For a moment, scientists thought Osiris might sink into it. But the small rockets mounted on the Osiris went into action immediately. Because of this, the task has gone up. Meanwhile some samples were also collected.

The mission will return with samples next year. Bennu is the name of a bird in ancient Egyptian belief. Scientists discovered Bennu in September 1999. Following this, a naming competition was held. Bennu was given that name by a 9-year-old boy.

Scientists say that Bennu is a fragment that broke off from a large asteroid billions of years ago. The asteroid originated in the Maine asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Scientists say that this asteroid will be destroyed by falling on Venus in the future.

English Summary : OSIRIS-REx touches Bennu