A NASA spacecraft that recently collected rocks from A. Star Grabbed more content than expected. The US space agency says Sample Was so large that it blocked the collector’s container door.
The Osiris-Rex spacecraft successfully completed it Star On October 20, the sample operation Benu is located about 320 million kilometers from Earth.
The samples were then trapped in a device called a storage head. NASA discovered the device’s blocked door in images obtained from the spacecraft’s control team. Due to the obstruction, some planetary ships had to come out of space.
Therefore, NASA scientists decided to extend the timeline to complete the next step in the operation. This includes storing, or storing, storage safely Capsules Inside the spacecraft.
“It’s time Of the elementThomas Zurbuchen told reporters about the change in plans. He is NASA’s Associate Administrator for Science.
Samples are processed in several stages. After each step, the spacecraft sends information and images back to Earth. Different team members make sure things are moving in the right direction.
The spacecraft is still so far away that its signal takes about 18 minutes to reach Earth. The same time is required for any communication of ground controllers to reach Osiris-Rex. Because of this, the stalling process was expected to take several days.
Scientists believe the operation weighed up to 400 grams Planetary material. That’s more than 60 grams. NASA said it expects Osiris-Rex to collect.
But mission leaders said they would not know exactly how much material was inside until the sample capsule returned to Earth. The team planned to process the sample for measurement. But that plan was scrapped because NASA said it could spread more material.
“I think we’ll have to wait until we get home Absolutely How much do we have, ”Dante Loretta, chief investigator for Osiris-Rex, told reporters. “As you can imagine, it’s difficult. … But the good news is that we see a lot of content. “
Team members also considered trying to make another collection. But the issue of the leak led NASA to decide against the plan. “Honestly, we can’t use a better collection,” Loretta said.
Osiris-Rex is expected to begin its return to Earth in March 2021. The voyage will take hundreds of years, with the planned arrival of the spacecraft scheduled for September 2023.
The mission marked the operation of NASA’s first interstellar spacecraft. Japan is the only other country Successfully captured Such a sample.
Asteroids are one of the remnants of the solar system formed about four billion years ago. NASA chose to collect a sample from Benu because it is considered a carbon-rich substance. Safe Creating blocks of our solar system.
Scientists say that planetary patterns can help them better understand how planets are formed and how life began on Earth.
I’m Brian Lynn.
Brian Lin wrote the story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from The Associated Press, Reuters, Agencies France-Press and NASA. Ashley Thomson was the editor.
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Words in this story
Star – n. Rock and metal objects that revolve around the sun but are smaller than planets
Sample – n. A little bit that gives you information about what was taken from
Capsules – N. The part of the spacecraft that carries people
Of the element – Ph.D. Very important
Absolutely – Ed. Absolutely
Save – Also. Keep something or protect it from damage
