NASA launched a meteorite research satellite that could destroy the Earth

The Orisis-Rex spacecraft will collect specimens on the asteroid Bennu and bring it back to Earth to study the meteorite that threatens to destroy the Earth.

The US Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has launched a probe named Osiris-Rex into space to carry out a seven-year mission, collecting rock samples on the asteroid Bennu to learn more about meteorites. threatening to destroy this Earth, BBC today reported.

The probe Orisis-Rex will collect specimens on the asteroid Bennu.(Photo: NASA).

The exploration ship Osiris-Rex was launched with Atlas rocket in Florida, USA on the evening of September 8 (local time). It will perform the task for 7 years before returning to Earth with the specimen obtained. The specimen will be placed in a container and dropped into the Utah desert on September 24, 2023.

The Bennu meteorite has a diameter of 500m, more than the height of Empire State Tower in the United States, and is believed to have the potential to cause serious consequences for the Earth. American scientists hope Osiris-Rex will acquire about a few hundred grams of material from this asteroid, in order to understand the details of the meteorite's structure and how it passes through the solar system.

Engineers have developed a device to collect robotic arm specimens extending from Osiris-Rex to touch Bennu's surface. When exposed to the meteorite surface, the device will fire a high pressure air flow, causing the debris to break out. The fragments were then collected by Osiris-Rex into the container and taken back to Earth.

Bennu is called a "B-type" asteroid. Observing from the telescope shows that it carries many carbon compounds. "These primitive materials can carry organic molecules that are precursors to life on Earth or any planet in the solar system," said Christina Richey, representative of the scientists of the Osiris-Rex project. , explain.

The Bennu meteorite has a larger diameter than the height of Empire State Tower.(Graphic: BBC).

Osiris-Rex will take at least two and a half years on Bennu. One of its tasks is to accurately calculate "Yarkovsky phenomenon" , the phenomenon of asteroids changing orbit when passing through the solar system because its surface is heated by the Sun. Over the centuries, this small change will accumulate gradually and may increase the risk of meteorites colliding with the Earth.

"This energy source, when released back into space, acts as a source of propulsion, causing asteroids to change direction. If we want to predict the future of objects like Bennu, we must explain it. This phenomenon, " said Dante Lauretta, principal researcher from the University of Arizona, USA.