NASAʼs OSIRIS-REx spacecraft retrieved 250 grams of soil samples from asteroid Bennu.
Kyodo News reports that the device arrived over Bennu back in December 2018. Since then, he has been conducting research and only in October 2020 he collected the first rock samples.
NASA expected to collect 60 grams of samples, but the probe was able to collect as much as 250 grams. In September 2023, the collected material will be delivered to Earth.
NASA plans to transfer part of the collected samples to the Japanese space agency.
Asteroids are believed to be remnants of the early formation of the Solar System, about 4.6 billion years ago. Their study will provide new knowledge about the formation of the Solar System and the origin of life.