Launched by NASA in September 2016, the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-Rex), spacecraft traveled to Bennu, a near-Earth 4.5-billion-year-old asteroid and collected a sample of rocks and dust from the surface.

The spacecraft delivered the eagerly awaited material to Earth on September 24, 2023, when the sample landed at a targeted area of the U.S. Department of Defense’s Utah Test and Training Range in Utah. Preliminary analyses of the 250 g of material reveal a high carbon and water content, a finding confirmed by scanning electron microscopy, infrared measurements, X-ray diffraction, chemical element analysis and X-ray computed tomography.

The sample return capsule from the OSIRIS-REx mission is seen shortly after touching down on September 24, 2023, in Utah. Source: NASA/Keegan Barber

According to Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx principal investigator, University of Arizona, Tucson, “The bounty of carbon-rich material and the abundant presence of water-bearing clay minerals are just the tip of the cosmic iceberg. These discoveries, made possible through years of dedicated collaboration and cutting-edge science, propel us on a journey to understand not only our celestial neighborhood but also the potential for life’s beginnings. With each revelation from Bennu, we draw closer to unraveling the mysteries of our cosmic heritage.”

Researchers will continue characterizing the samples over the next two years. NASA plans to preserve at least 70% of the sample at its Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, for ongoing studies by scientists worldwide.