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OSIRIS-REx is NASA's first asteroid
sample return mission.

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It launched in September 2016 on a journey

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to explore a near-Earth
asteroid called Bennu.

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After arriving in 2018, OSIRIS-REx
spent nearly two years orbiting Bennu,

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mapping and studying its rugged terrain

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before carrying out its primary
science objective.

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On October 20th, 2020,

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the spacecraft ventured to a small crater
in the asteroid's northern hemisphere.

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It dodged jagged rocks and towering
boulders and plunged its arm

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into the loose surface, excavating
six tons of debris while collecting

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about 250 grams of material.

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OSIRIS-REx stowed its bounty
and closed its sample return capsule.

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It bid farewell to Bennu in May 2021,

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embarking on a 1.2 billion mile cruise
back to Earth.

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Now, two years and four months
after leaving Bennu,

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OSIRIS-REx is closing in on the
place where its journey began.

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[Music]

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On September 24th,

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the spacecraft will approach
to nearly 63,000 miles from Earth.

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It will power up and release its sample
return capsule at 4:42 a.m.

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Mountain Time.

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The capsule must be jettisoned
within a narrow timeframe

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and at just the right angle to hit
its target: an area of roughly

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250 square miles in Utah's West Desert.

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Once the capsule is away,
OSIRIS-REx will fire

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its thrusters
to avoid colliding with Earth.

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At 8:42 a.m.,

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the capsule will streak
into the atmosphere at a blistering

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27.000 miles per hour.

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It will race across the western U.S.

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and begin to glow with heat,

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allowing infrared trackers
on the ground to chart its progress.

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As it pushes deeper into the atmosphere,
the capsule will rapidly decelerate,

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subjecting the Bennu samples
to a punishing 32 G’s.

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About 2 minutes after entry,
it will slow to Mach 1.4 and deploy

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its drogue parachute,
stabilizing its descent.

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The capsule will enter
special use airspace at 8:46 a.m.,

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almost ten miles above the department
of Defense Utah Test and Training Range.

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Radar stations will lock on
and track it to

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within thirty feet of its
landing site. At 8:50 a.m.,

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the capsule will extract and deploy its
main parachute one mile above the ground.

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It will make its final descent
at a leisurely eleven miles per hour,

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like a marathon runner
savoring a victory lap,

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before touching down
in the desert soil at 8:55.

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After ground teams retrieve the capsule,

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The Bennu samples will be taken to NASA's
Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

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The sample canister will be opened
in the Astromaterials Acquisition

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and Curation Facility,

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and the samples will be curated,
distributed, and studied

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for decades to come.

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Having delivered its cargo,
the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft

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will depart Earth, but
its journey will not quite be finished.

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In a daring encore, the renamed OSIRIS-APEX
will enter an elliptical orbit

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of the Sun, repeatedly passing
within the orbit of Venus

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and pushing the limits of
its thermal design.

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Beginning in 2029, it will chase down

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and investigate Apophis,
a 1200-foot stony asteroid

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destined to make an exceptionally
close flyby of Earth.

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After thirteen years in deep space,

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at the start of a new decade, alone
on a new world, the journey will continue.

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[Music]