Scientists have high hopes for the sample, saying it will provide a better understanding of the formation of our solar system and how Earth became habitable.
Four years after its 2016 launch, the probe landed on the asteroid Bennu and collected roughly nine ounces of dust from its rocky surface. / Photo: Reuters Archive
The climactic end of a seven-year voyage comes when a NASA capsule is due to land in the Utah desert, carrying to Earth the largest asteroid samples ever collected.'s final, fiery descent through Earth's atmosphere will be perilous, but the US space agency is hoping for a soft landing, around 9:00 am local , in a military test range in northwestern Utah on Sunday.
Four years after its 2016 launch, the probe landed on the asteroid Bennu and collected roughly 250 grams of dust from its rocky surface. Even that small amount, NASA says, should"help us better understand the types of asteroids that could threaten Earth" and cast light"on the earliest history of our solar system," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said.
"This sample return is really historic," NASA scientist Amy Simon said."This is going to be the biggest sample we've brought back since the Apollo moon rocks" were returned to Earth.
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