News About Asteroids And Comets
September 26, 2023
Three Questions: The first asteroid sample returned to Earth

Boston MA (SPX) Sep 26, 2023
On Sunday morning, a capsule the size of a mini-fridge dropped from the skies over western Utah, carrying a first-of-its-kind package: about 250 grams of dirt and dust plucked from the surface of an asteroid. As a candy-striped parachute billowed open to slow its freefall, the capsule plummeted down to the sand, slightly ahead of schedule. The special delivery came courtesy of OSIRIS-REx, the first NASA mission to travel to an asteroid and return a sample of its contents to Earth. Launched in 20 ... read more
How OSIRIS-REx is helping scientists study the sonic signature of meteoroids
Albuquerque NM (SPX) Sep 26, 2023
In the high desert of Nevada, Elizabeth Silber watched NASA's Sample Return Capsule from OSIRIS-REx descend into Earth's atmosphere on Sunday, but unlike most scientists, she wasn't there for the as ... more
Major asteroid sample brought to Earth in NASA first
Dugway, United States (AFP) Sept 25, 2023
A seven-year space voyage came to its climactic end Sunday when a NASA capsule landed in the desert in the US state of Utah, carrying to Earth the largest asteroid samples ever collected. ... more
OSIRIS-REx Makes Final Course Adjustment Before Sept. 24 Sample Delivery
Washington DC (SPX) Sep 20, 2023
On Sept. 17, NASA's OSIRIS-REx engineers slightly shifted the spacecraft's trajectory to refine the landing location of its sample capsule, which the spacecraft will deliver to Earth on Sept. 24. Th ... more
NASA to live stream asteroid sample's return to Earth this weekend
Washington DC (UPI) Sep 20, 2023
NASA has scheduled coverage of its first asteroid sampling mission's return to Earth. ... more
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Major asteroid sample brought to Earth in NASA first
Dugway, United States (AFP) Sept 24, 2023
A seven-year space voyage came to its climactic end Sunday when a NASA capsule landed in the desert in the US state of Utah, carrying to Earth the largest asteroid samples ever collected. ... more
First view of OSIRIS-REx returning with asteroid sample
Paris (ESA) Sep 22, 2023
Is it a spacecraft? An asteroid? Well, both. This small central speck is the first image of a spacecraft on its way home, carrying with it a sample from an asteroid hundreds-of-millions, if-not-bill ... more
Historic NASA asteroid mission set for perilous return
Washington (AFP) Sept 22, 2023
NASA's first mission to retrieve an asteroid sample and return it to US soil is expected to reach a perilous finale on Sunday with a descent into the Utah desert. ... more
Purdue scientist among first to examine asteroid pieces from OSIRIS-REx mission
West Lafayette IN (SPX) Sep 19, 2023
To study the planets, someone has to go there: Either a human or a bot launches into space to physically explore other worlds. Scientists who study extraterrestrial materials can't usually bring the ... more
Lucy captures its first images of Asteroid Dinkinesh
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Sep 12, 2023
The small dot moving against the background of stars is the first view from NASA's Lucy spacecraft of the main belt asteroid Dinkinesh, the first of 10 asteroids that the spacecraft will visit on it ... more
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OSIRIS-REx adjusts course to target sample capsule's landing zone
Washington DC (SPX) Sep 12, 2023
On Sept. 10, NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft briefly fired its ACS (attitude control system) thrusters to point itself toward Earth, putting it on course to release its sample capsule, carrying rocks a ... more
Here's How Sept. 24 Asteroid Sample Delivery Will Work
Washington DC (SPX) Sep 11, 2023
Early morning on Sunday, Sept. 24, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft's sample capsule will come face-to-face with Earth's atmosphere for the first time since the mission's 2016 launch. On board are an estim ... more
Psyche on track for liftoff next month
Pasadena CA (JPL) Sep 08, 2023
Bound for a metal-rich asteroid of the same name, the Psyche mission is targeting Oct. 5 to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft's solar arrays are folded like an ... more
Newly discovered comet visible in night sky this weekend
Paris (AFP) Sept 6, 2023
A comet called Nishimura discovered just a month ago could be visible to the naked eye this weekend, offering stargazers a once-in-a-437-year chance to observe the celestial visitor. ... more
NASA completes last OSIRIS-REx test before asteroid sample delivery
Washington DC (SPX) Sep 04, 2023
A team led by NASA in Utah's West Desert is in the final stages of preparing for the arrival of the first U.S. asteroid sample - slated to land on Earth in September. A mockup of NASA's OSIRIS-REx ( ... more
Hera asteroid spacecraft assembled

Bremen, Germany (SPX) Aug 25, 2023
Hera is complete. ESA's asteroid mission for planetary defence was built and prepared in two halves, but now, through a painstaking operation, they have been mated together to make a single spacecraft, ready for full-scale testing of its readiness for space. The mating took place at OHB Bremen in Germany, with Hera's Core Module raised more than 3 m above its Propulsion Module then gradually and carefully slotted into place, over a three-hour period. The modules had been placed in cages to ensure ... read more
Asteroid's impact allowed mammals to rule Earth, but why so?
Vancouver, Canada (SPX) Aug 21, 2023
Almost 66 million years ago, an asteroid struck the Earth, killing all non-avian dinosaurs and allowing mammals to dominate. But just how did we evolve from rat-like creatures running between ... more

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NASA's $985 million Psyche mission to all-metal asteroid nears liftoff
Washington DC (UPI) Aug 16, 2023
Preparations are proceeding for the early October launch of a NASA orbiter that uses futuristic electric propulsion technology for a rendezvous with 16 Psyche, the heart of a demolished planet belie ... more
Hera's mini-radar will probe asteroid's heart
Grenoble, France (SPX) Aug 11, 2023
The smallest radar to fly in space has been delivered to ESA for integration aboard the miniature Juventas CubeSat, part of ESA's Hera mission for planetary defence. The radar will perform the first ... more
Winchcombe meteorite is helping us to understand more about asteroids
London, UK (SPX) Aug 09, 2023
One of the UK's most famous meteorites is helping scientists learn more about asteroids millions of kilometres away from Earth. Knowing more about the chemical composition of the Winchcombe meteorit ... more
A Banner Year For The Perseid Meteor Shower
Washington DC (SPX) Aug 08, 2023
The Perseid meteor shower, a celestial event eagerly awaited by millions of skywatchers around the world, is about to make its annual return to the night sky. The shower is predicted to reach its pe ... more
Asteroid Institute Unveils Rapid Online Precovery Tool For Searching Multiple Astronomical Datasets in Minutes
San Francisco CA (SPX) Aug 03, 2023
Asteroid Institute has launched a publicly available Precovery service that can both confirm and refine the orbits of asteroids by rapidly searching through a collection of astronomical data that ha ... more
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