Speaker: Erica Jawin

Host: Cyril Grima

Title: Shattered Fragments: Origins and Evolution of Asteroid (101955) Bennu and the OSIRIS-REx Mission

Abstract: NASA’s
OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission investigated near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu and collected over 100 g of rocky material from its surface after several years spent orbiting the asteroid. In September 2023, the spacecraft safely delivered its sample to Earth. Bennu proved to be a surprising object from the very first images showing an unexpectedly rugged and extremely weak surface probed during sample collection. This lecture will discuss the origins of Bennu’s rubble pile structure, how its diverse boulders hint at these origins, as well as initial perspectives from analysis of the returned sample. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is now on its way to a new target, the asteroid (99942) Apophis, following its close approach with Earth in 2029.