SPACE CADETS / MAGNIFICENT IMAGE OF ASTEROID EXPLORER’S AMAZING RETURN TO EARTH

NASA photograph

Osiris-Rex sample collector return capsule lands safely in Utah desert (above). OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid. It returned to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023, to drop off material from asteroid Bennu. The spacecraft didn't land, but continued on to a new mission to explore asteroid Apophis. 

Meanwhile, scientists hope the pristine samples it dropped into the Utah desert offer clues to whether asteroids colliding with Earth billions of years ago brought water and other key ingredients for life. 

 Below is a NASA illustration of Osiris-Rex hovering over asteroid Bennu before gathering samples. The location of the return capsule is easily seen outlined in the illustration.