Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreLOS ANGELES, Sept 23 (Reuters) - A NASA space capsule carrying a sample of rocky material plucked from the surface of an asteroid three years ago hurtled toward Earth this weekend headed for a fiery plunge through the atmosphere and a parachute landing in the Utah desert on Sunday.
OSIRIS-REx collected its specimen from Bennu, a carbon-rich asteroid discovered in 1999 and classified as a "near-Earth object" because it passes relatively close to our planet every six years.
The Bennu sample is estimated at 250 grams (8.8 ounces), far surpassing the amount of material carried back from asteroid Ryugu in 2020 and asteroid Itokawa in 2010.
The main portion of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, meanwhile, is expected to sail on to explore yet another near-Earth asteroid.
Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles, Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Persons:
REx, Sandra Freund, Lockheed Martin, Dante Lauretta, NASA's, Steve Gorman, Rosalba O'Brien
Organizations:
United Launch Alliance, V, Cape Canaveral Air Force, NASA, Lockheed, University of Arizona, Empire, NASA's Johnson Space Center, Thomson
Locations:
Florida, U.S, ANGELES, Utah, military's, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Houston, Los Angeles