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NASA finally has counted up all the asteroid samples returned by a spacecraft last fall\u2014and it’s double the rubble return goal.<\/p>\n
Officials reported Thursday that the Osiris-Rex spacecraft collected 121.6 grams (4.29 ounces) of dust and pebbles from asteroid Bennu. That’s just over half a cup and the biggest cosmic haul ever from beyond the moon.<\/p>\n
It took NASA longer than expected to pry open the sample container because of stuck fasteners.<\/p>\n
The black, carbon-rich samples\u2014the first ever collected from an asteroid by NASA\u2014are stored at a special curation lab at Houston’s Johnson Space Center.<\/p>\n
Osiris-Rex returned the samples last September, three years after gathering them from the asteroid. The haul for the $1 billion mission would have been greater, but rocks jammed the lid of the container following the grab and some samples floated away.<\/p>\n
The spacecraft is now on its way to another space rock, but that will involve only a flyby with no stop for samples.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNASA’s final tally shows spacecraft returned double the amount of asteroid rubble (2024, February 16)
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