JAKARTA – After months trapped in a capsule, the United States Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that it had succeeded in removing samples from the asteroid Bennu.
This was possible because the curatorial team at NASA’s Johnson Space Center developed a tool to detach two fasteners from the head Touch-and-go sample acquisition mechanism (TAG SAM). This dismantling managed to expose the rocks and dust inside.
“Engineers and scientists have worked tirelessly behind the scenes for months to design, develop and test new tools that will allow us to overcome this obstacle,” said Eileen Stansbery, head of the Johnson ARES division.
Stansbery further stated that the entire team, including engineers and scientists, is pleased with this success. To accommodate this success, the team will take high-resolution images of the samples, remove them and weigh them.
The weight of the remaining collected samples is not yet known, but last October the curation team managed to collect 70.3 grams of samples. While not counting the newly secured samples, NASA managed to exceed its goal by collecting 60 grams of material.
Currently, the curation team has separated the samples to share them with the NASA science team. The remaining samples carried by the Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) capsule were sealed in an airtight container for long-term storage.
Samples from Bennu were first collected on October 20 last year. At that time, the curatorial team could only collect part of the material because the TAGSAM head could not yet be opened. The reason is that there are no proper tools to get into the glove compartment.
The team had difficulty because they had to be careful to open the capsule. The only way to collect the remaining material was to develop a new tool that could reach into the glove compartment and unscrew two fasteners.
Fortunately, NASA was able to open TAGSAM and collect Bennu’s remaining material. Over the next few months, the curation team will catalog Bennu’s samples so they can be accessible to the global scientific community.
Tag: NASA space satellite
2024-01-12 05:35:00
#NASA #successfully #removes #remaining #Bennu #samples #capsule