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The first stone from Bennu is on display at the Washington Museum.
In Washington, at the National Museum of Natural History, the grand opening of the first exhibition dedicated to the asteroid Bennu took place. Visitors to the museum were able to see for the first time a sample of space rock delivered to Earth by NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission. This small rock, which has traveled 2.3 billion kilometers, is located in an atmosphere of pure nitrogen in a special steel capsule, which is equipped with a window for observation.
The sample, measuring just 8 millimeters in diameter and weighing 143 milligrams, is surrounded by scale models of the Atlas V launch vehicle and the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. The exhibition asks the question: can this fragment of an asteroid contain information about the beginning of our solar system and the origin of life on Earth?
CT scans showed that the stone was made up of dozens of small stones held together, and that the entire sample was heavily altered by water, resulting in clays, iron oxides, iron sulfides and carbonates, as well as carbon.
Museum curator Tim McCoy shared that the choice fell on this stone because of its typical nature for the imported material, photogenic and strength required for transportation across the country. Initially, scientists considered five or six candidates, but chose this one because it turned out to be "just right".
In addition to the stone on display, the Smithsonian Institution also received another fragment of Bennu for scientific research. Two more stones will be displayed at the Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum in Arizona and the Houston Space Center, near the Johnson Space Flight Center in Texas, where most of Bennu's samples are located. The opening dates of these expositions have not yet been announced, it is expected that information will appear by November 15.
In Washington, at the National Museum of Natural History, the grand opening of the first exhibition dedicated to the asteroid Bennu took place. Visitors to the museum were able to see for the first time a sample of space rock delivered to Earth by NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission. This small rock, which has traveled 2.3 billion kilometers, is located in an atmosphere of pure nitrogen in a special steel capsule, which is equipped with a window for observation.
The sample, measuring just 8 millimeters in diameter and weighing 143 milligrams, is surrounded by scale models of the Atlas V launch vehicle and the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. The exhibition asks the question: can this fragment of an asteroid contain information about the beginning of our solar system and the origin of life on Earth?
CT scans showed that the stone was made up of dozens of small stones held together, and that the entire sample was heavily altered by water, resulting in clays, iron oxides, iron sulfides and carbonates, as well as carbon.
Museum curator Tim McCoy shared that the choice fell on this stone because of its typical nature for the imported material, photogenic and strength required for transportation across the country. Initially, scientists considered five or six candidates, but chose this one because it turned out to be "just right".
In addition to the stone on display, the Smithsonian Institution also received another fragment of Bennu for scientific research. Two more stones will be displayed at the Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum in Arizona and the Houston Space Center, near the Johnson Space Flight Center in Texas, where most of Bennu's samples are located. The opening dates of these expositions have not yet been announced, it is expected that information will appear by November 15.
