NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft accomplished the remarkable feat of bringing back 4.29 ounces (121.6 grams) of material from the asteroid Bennu upon its return to Earth on September 24, 2023. This achievement not only represents the largest sample ever collected from an asteroid in space but also exceeds the mission’s initial requirement by more than double, according to NASA’s announcement on Saturday.
The mission’s objective was to collect a minimum of 60 grams of material to meet its scientific goals, a target that was surpassed even before the Touch-and-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM) head was fully opened.
In October 2023, curation processors at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, part of the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) division, successfully retrieved small rocks and dust from both the interior of the large canister housing the TAGSAM head and from within the TAGSAM head itself via its mylar flap, as detailed by NASA on its official blog.
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