Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2019 December 23

                Places for OSIRIS-REx to Touch Asteroid Bennu
            Video Credit: NASA, GSFC, U. Arizona, SVS, OSIRIS-REx

   Explanation: Where is the best place to collect a surface sample from
   asteroid Bennu? Launched in 2016, NASA sent the robotic Origins,
   Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith
   Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) to investigate the 500-meter-across asteroid
   101955 Bennu. After mapping the near-Earth asteroid's dark surface,
   OSIRIS-REx will next touch Bennu's surface in 2020 August to collect a
   surface sample. The featured 23-second time-lapse video shows four
   candidate locations for the touch, from which NASA chose just one
   earlier this month. NASA chose the Nightingale near Bennu's northern
   hemisphere as the primary touch-down spot because of its relative
   flatness, lack of boulders, and apparent abundance of fine-grained
   sand. Location Osprey is the backup. NASA plans to return soil samples
   for Bennu to Earth in 2023 for a detailed analysis.

   Free Presentation: APOD Editor to show best astronomy images of 2019 --
                    and the decade -- in NYC on January 3
                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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