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A NASA spacecraft is about to boop an asteroid and bring some of it back to Earth, marking a historic first for the U.S. space agency.
After launching from Cape Canaveral in September 2016, the passenger-van-sized spacecraft traveled for two years to catch up with asteroid Bennu, where it has been orbiting since December 2018 and preparing for its big day.
That day has finally arrived for OSIRIS-REx, which stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer, a true mouthful even for a NASA acronym. Now, the spacecraft is just hours away from conducting a “touch and go” maneuver using its pogo-stick-like arm to tag the asteroid and collect up to four and a half pounds of space rock and dust.
The 500-meter-wide asteroid was chosen for several reasons, including that it could one day -- in a very long time-- impact Earth, but it’s also thought to hold clues as to how planets formed.
From 5 to 6:30 p.m., NASA will air a live broadcast from Lockheed Martin in Denver of OSIRIS-REx’s descent to the surface of Bennu and attempt at sample collection. You can watch that live at the top of this story.
Around 6:12 p.m. ET OSIRIS-REx is set to conduct the most dangerous part of the mission when it touches the asteroid.
While a live view from Bennu isn’t possible, NASA will show animations of what is happening, play-by-play.
Here is a full list of activities leading up to the asteroid “tag” and after to learn how it went.
If the sample collection goes as planned, the spacecraft will drop off the sample to Earth in 2023, where it will then undergo analysis in labs at NASA’s Goddard Flight Center and elsewhere, however, 75% of the sample will be achieved.
Follow live updates below leading up to the asteroid “tag” and for reaction from OSIRIS-REx team members after the main event.
9 a.m. Today is ‘tag’ time
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