OSIRIS-REx L-30 Press Briefing Graphics

  • Released Wednesday, August 30th, 2023
  • ID: 12976

On Sept. 24, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will approach Earth and release a capsule containing samples of near-Earth asteroid Bennu. The Sample Return Capsule will streak into the atmosphere at 8:42 am MDT and land at the Department of Defense Utah Test and Training Range at 8:55 am.

Touchdown will mark the end of a seven-year journey to explore asteroid Bennu, collect a sample from its surface, and deliver it to Earth. Scientists from around the world will study the sample over the coming decades to learn about the formation of the solar system and the delivery of organic molecules to early Earth.

The week of Aug. 27, the OSIRIS-REx mission team gathered in Utah to test their landing and recovery plans. Their goal was to reduce the time to safely retrieve the capsule from the desert floor and transport it to a clean room on base, protecting the Bennu sample from earthly contaminants. On Wednesday, Aug. 30, NASA held a press briefing to discuss the test and to preview sample return. Presenter graphics are available below. Animations of OSIRIS-REx sample return are available here.

Learn more about the drop test. Follow the journey to Bennu and back on NASA.gov and on Flickr. Watch a recording of the press briefing on YouTube.

Sample Recovery Rehearsal, August 30, 2023: Drop test of OSIRIS-REx Sample Return Capsule.

Sample Recovery Rehearsal, August 29, 2023: Helicopter transport of Sample Return Capsule to clean room area.

Slide 1: Intro - Press Conference Show Opener

Slide 2: Melissa Morris - NASA's Planetary FleetCredit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Slide 2: Melissa Morris - NASA's Planetary Fleet

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Slide 3: Melissa Morris - OSIRIS-REx's Journey

Slide 5: Rich Burns - OSIRIS-REx Return Trajectory

Slide 6. Rich Burns - Sample Landing Map

Slide 7: Sandy Freund - Sample Return Animation

Slide 8: Sandy Freund - SRC Release & Landing Milestones

Credit: Lockheed Martin

Slide 9: Sandy Freund - SRC Field Recovery

Credit: Lockheed Martin

Slide 10: Sandy Freund - Sample Delivery to JSC

Slide 11: Kevin Righter - Landing Site Air & Soil Sample Collection

Slide 12: Kevin Righter - JSC Clean Room Sample Analysis

Slide 13: Dante Lauretta, Through The Years

Slide 14: Dante Lauretta - OSIRIS-REx Mission Timeline

Slide 15: Dante Lauretta - Sample Analysis

Slide 16: Dante Lauretta - Solar System Origins

Slide 17: Bennu - Journey's End

Watch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.

For More Information

See NASA.gov

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Missions

This visualization is related to the following missions: