                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2023 September 29

                               Back from Bennu
                      Image Credit: NASA/Keegan Barber

   Explanation: Back from asteroid 101955 Bennu, a 110-pound, 31-inch wide
   sample return capsule rests in a desert on planet Earth in this photo,
   taken at the Department of Defense Utah Test and Training Range near
   Salt Lake City last Sunday, September 24. Dropped off by the OSIRIS-Rex
   spacecraft, the capsule looks charred from the extreme temperatures
   experienced during its blistering descent through Earth's dense
   atmosphere. OSIRIS-Rex began its home-ward journey from Bennu in May of
   2021. Delivered to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston on September
   25, the capsule's canister is expected to contain an uncontaminated
   sample of about a half pound (250 grams) of Bennu's loosely packed
   regolith. Working in a new laboratory designed for the OSIRIS-REx
   mission, scientists and engineers will complete the canister
   disassembly process, and plan to unveil the sample of the near-Earth
   asteroid in a broadcast event on October 11.

                        Tomorrow's picture: shine on
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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